UHY LLP, a leading national certified public accounting firm, recently announced a series of promotions; one senior manager, seven managers, three senior accountants, ten senior staff accountants and one client service associate.

Between the last three quarters of 2012 and first quarter of 2013, UHY LLP's Michigan offices added 41 employees to their team and its growth is far from over. This top accounting firm is always scouting seasoned financial professionals who seek to take charge of their careers.

Rick David, Chief Operating Officer at UHY Advisors, Inc., was honored by the American Arab Professionals Network (AAPN) of the American Arab Chamber of Commerce as the 2013 American Arab Professional of the Year in Finance Award at their Eighth Annual Celebrating Success Banquet on Wednesday, May 15, 2012 at the Bint Jebail Cultural Center in Dearborn, MI. David was recognized for his outstanding accomplishments in Finance.

If you hired new employees in 2014, then you should know that your business may be entitled to substantial tax benefits for doing so. This is because the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) has been extended.

Is there hope for true tax reform? And what would tax reform look like? It would take the President, a Republican Party leader and a Democratic Party leader working together to pass legislation. It would enact a simplified rate system for individuals and a simplified tax code that broadens the tax base and closes loopholes and special interest tax shelters. But is that really possible?

Now that the Budget Sequester brouhaha is behind us, Congress and President Obama are rattling their tax reform sabers. And, if that is not enough to get the attention of taxpayers, the U.S. Tax Court recently issued two decisions in favor of the IRS's denial of a federal income tax charitable deduction solely because of a charity's failure to technically comply with the requirements on substantiating a charitable contribution. These developments and more are summarized below.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has decided to explore the option of simplifying the standards in relation to deferred tax assets and liabilities from a reporting and classification standpoint. After many sleepless months, the FASB has proposed two accounting standard updates.

With the Budget Sequester still set to take effect on March 1, 2013, unless Congress acts to again "kick it down the road", both Republicans and Democrats are trying to position themselves as the voice of reason.

In September, the IRS proposed taxpayer-friendly changes to Section 174 to clarify the definition of research and experimental (R&D) expenditures incurred in connection with the development of tangible property, including expenditures to develop a pilot model (i.e. prototype).

On December 31, 2013, 53 tax provisions expired, some of which have been around for a number of years. While there has been some talk in Congress about some of these provisions being extended and/or increased to their previous benefit amounts, currently none of them have been extended.

The IRS issued long-awaited regulations effective for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2014 that create guidelines for treatment of both real and tangible personal property (TPP). These regulations will affect taxpayers in every industry that own depreciable capital assets, have repairs and maintenance, or materials and supplies. All businesses and any individuals that file a Schedule C or E will be affected and must comply with these new regulations. As currently written, the new regulations are complex and present onerous compliance requirements that will significantly increase the amount of compliance work required for the 2014 tax filings.

Subject to voter approval in August 2014 (already passed by legislature in 2012), the phase out of personal property taxes will begin in 2016. By eliminating personal property taxes on property that is 10 years old, as well as new personal property, the personal property tax will be completely eliminated by 2023. If voters approve the measure, a special assessment will be added to real property tax bills starting in 2017 to pay for essential services.

UHY Advisors’ Managing Director Frank Fenello was recently interviewed by Rob Stadler on Star94 in Atlanta, and provided some clarity about the realities of the fiscal cliff and what it could mean for individuals and businesses in the near future.

The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and the Department of Labor (“DOL”) continue to issue guidance to employers regarding those provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (“ACA”) which are scheduled to become effective for 2013 and 2014.

The Department of Treasury has announced that it is providing an "offer in compromise" program beginning Jan. 1, 2015. The program allows for a taxpayer to submit an offer to lower the amount of a tax liability for less than the full amount due. A tax liability includes the tax and any related interest and penalty.

Nonqualified deferred compensation plans are subject to the complexities of § 409A of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC"). Failure to comply with the requirements of IRC § 409A can result in significant adverse federal income tax consequences for the participants. A recent decision in one of the first cases considering IRC § 409A shows just how tough the IRS can be on these plans.

On April 10, 2013, President Obama released his 2014 Fiscal Year "Budget Proposal" (i.e., for the federal government's Fiscal Year beginning October 1, 2013 and ending September 30, 2014). According to the White House, the Budget Proposal should achieve a $1.8 trillion deficit reduction.

In a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court held in Obergefell v. Hodges that the 14th amendment requires all states to license a marriage between two persons of the same sex and to recognize same-sex marriages validly performed out of state. This ruling will provide both same-sex and opposite-sex married couples with the same state and federal rights and privileges across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Since the enactment of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief and Reconciliation Act of 2001 ("EGTRRA") up until the enactment in December 2012 of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 ("ATRA"), estate planners have had to plan around tax provisions that were expressly stated to be temporary in nature. ATRA has now provided rules governing the estate tax, the gift tax, and the generation skipping transfer tax ("transfer taxes") that are, at least according to ATRA, permanent (i.e., not subject to "sunsetting" at some fixed date in the future).

A directive has been issued by the Large Business & International Division (LB&I) simplifying the approach in determining who bears the benefits and burdens of ownership in a contract manufacturing arrangement to claim a deduction under section 199 (DPAD).

UHY LLP, a leading certified public accounting firm, is hosting its annual Tax forum at the MSU Management Education Center in Troy on Wednesday, December 5. This complimentary half-day program addresses the latest tax laws, trends and developments impacting both individuals and businesses. CPE credit will be offered.

President Obama's re-election signals the likelihood of up-coming difficult negotiations between Democrats and Republicans over (1) the fate of the Bush-era tax cuts, (2) nearly $100 billion in automatic spending cuts for the Government's fiscal year beginning October 1, 2013, and (3) whether a long list of recently enacted, but now expiring tax benefits and exclusions, including the AMT patch for 2012 and beyond, will be extended again.

Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act was adopted on August 22, 2012 and specifies the requirements surrounding the sources of materials that are classified as "conflict minerals" that may be present in the products a company produces and/or sells. The key minerals are tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold. Deadlines for the first reporting period regarding reasonable country of origin inquiries (RCOIs) and conflict minerals are due May 31, 2014. With just six months left to complete your due diligence, it is crucial that your company has actively initiated a plan that includes a review of potential conflict minerals and the country of origin.

On March 23, 2010 the Patient Protection Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Obama. The act is now known simply as the Affordable Care Act or ACA. One of the components of the ACA is what is known as “essential health benefits”. Essential health benefits will apply to all plans that are offered by the state and federal exchanges as well as non-grandfathered individual plans and non-grandfathered, fully insured small group plans through private insurers. Large group fully insured plans, self-funded plans and grandfathered plans are not required to add essential health benefits.

Guidance has been issued by the IRS's Small Business/Self-Employed Division (SB/SE) to its Collection department employees regarding collecting taxes that were due to be paid, but were not paid, by a PEO with respect to wages paid before April 1, 2014.

UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network, of which our firm UHY LLP has been a member since 2001, has launched a radical update of their international branding and online presence, to ensure that it is instantly recognizable to clients and business partners wherever they are in the world.

June 19, 2015 marked a very exciting day for small businesses and investors alike. The implementation of Title IV of the JOBS Act, also known as Regulation A+, has leveled the playing field for investors by granting early stage companies the ability to raise capital from anyone as opposed to only accredited investors.

A valuation project in the bankruptcy context may include specific purposes. During each valuation project it is not uncommon to encounter unique and customized circumstances. However, in the bankruptcy context, below is a list of some of the most common.

It is usually a good idea for a company to save money for a rainy day. Unfortunately, business owners can run into serious tax trouble if their corporations sock away too much cash. The tax trouble comes from the Accumulated Earnings Tax which is a tax on corporations buried in a little noticed Subchapter of the Internal Revenue Code. Although many businesses have tended to ignore this tax, the IRS is fully aware of it and is not shy about trying to impose it whenever it feels that "excessive" funds are being accumulated by a corporation. In fact, over the past few years, the IRS appears to be increasing its assertions of accumulated earnings issues in conducting corporate income tax audits.

With Congress only now coming back in the week of September 10, 2012 from its traditional August recess, there is not too much to report for September 2012. Consequently, with the 2012 Presidential election almost here, it seems appropriate to compare and contrast in general terms the tax policies being advanced by President Obama and former Governor Romney. It is likely that the policies being advanced now by the winner of the November 6, 2012 election will impact not only 2013, but also 2014 and beyond.

An American renaissance
November 1, 2012
Join us on-site at UHY’s St. Louis office or on-line via webcast
On-site Program
7:30AM–10:45AM CDT
On-line Webinar
8:00AM–10:45AM CDT
Join us to learn more about the latest industry trends and rebirth of American manufacturing. Topics, speakers and keynote will be announced shortly.
CPE credit will be offered.

Please join blackline Systems and UHY for an exclusive networking breakfast discussing the challenges organizations currently face in creating an efficient and effective record to
Report process and how new Finance Governance Technology Tools help address these challenges. We are also pleased to have Henry Wagner, a Senior Manager in the Accounting & Financial Reporting function at Chrysler, discuss how Chrysler has been successful in addressing these challenges.

Electronic banking transactions via the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network are commonplace for even the smallest businesses. As the volume of ACH transactions increases, so does the likelihood of fraud.

Workplace ethics need to make a comeback. Considering such landmark scandals as Enron, the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme and the Merrill Lynch bonus bust; coupled with recent allegations against Bank of America’s former CEO and CFO for misleading investors about Merrill Lynch prior to acquiring the Wall Street bank in early 2009[1]; and reports that point to credit card abuse at all levels of our government[2], ethics in America continue to be called into question. The gap between proclaimed business values and practiced business values is wide, and it’s time to bring the two back together.

There is not too much to report for August 2012. Republicans in the House of Representatives continue to push forward bills that reflect their vision of tax reform while the Democrats in the Senate try to advance their own vision, one diametrically opposed to that of the Republicans. And neither side is budging.

CONSUMERS IN EMERGING ECONOMIES STILL GETTING A RAW DEAL AS BURDEN OF IMPORT DUTIES PUTS UP PRICES
· Protectionist policies also undermine domestic competitiveness
· Emerging economies levy average customs duties of 0.82 percent of GDP, while EU countries charge 0.13 percent - less than one sixth as much

May 2012 was relatively quiet on the Tax front. There were, however, some important developments worth noting, specifically regarding (1) the new health care law, (2) distributions from IRAs, (3) the new 3.8% Medicare Tax, (4) the Republicans stated intention of extending for at least another year the “Bush Tax Cuts, and (5) proposed legislation restricting the ability of states to subject non-residents to their state income tax:

U.S. persons with a financial interest or signature authority over a foreign financial account(s) for which the total of all foreign accounts is greater than $10,000 at any time during 2014 must file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (Form 114 - FBAR) by June 30, 2015.

April 2012 saw a dramatic decline in any meaningful discussion of fundamental tax reform. Congress was nevertheless active in attempting to enact incremental tax law changes. First up were efforts to curtail various tax breaks now enjoyed by the oil industry. Next on the Congressional agenda was consideration of Representative Eric Cantor's (R-VA) "Small Business Tax Cut Act," discussed in last month's Newsletter. This legislation would give certain small businesses a tax deduction of up to 20% of the business' active income. The Senate's Democrats countered with their own small business tax cut bill, the "Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act of 2012." And, Democrats in the Senate are trying to advance President Obama's "Buffett Rule" through the "Paying A Fair Share Act" (S. 2230).

Sam Aziz has been brought on as a Manager at the UHY Advisors' Atlanta-based Southeast office, with the goal to assist in beefing up its Internal Audit, Risk and Compliance Practice. Aziz brings extensive audit, controls and information security experience to the firm, and will help UHY mitigate clients’ risk and help them improve their organizational processes. Aziz spoke to Consulting One on One about the challenges his clients are facing and why UHY is poised to meet their changing demands and needs.

Between the last three quarters of 2014 and first quarter of 2015, UHY LLP's Michigan practice added 89 employees to their team. The Michigan offices were excited to welcome their biggest hiring class of interns and staff accountants yet, on Wednesday, January 7.

Since at least 1974, the IRS has sought to rein in attempts by S corporations to minimize the FICA tax responsibilities of both the corporation and its shareholder-employees. S corporations have typically attempted to do this by paying minimal salaries to their shareholder-employees, and, if the shareholder-employee needs access to additional corporate funds, letting them pull money out of the corporation in the form of a non-wage distribution. The IRS has, however, recently scored an important victory in this struggle with taxpayers in a case out of the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

Please join us for this quick hitting lunch hour geared towards petroleum and c-store business owners, chief executives and chief financial officers. Tune in as our experts address current trends in M&A activity affecting the industry and you. Webinar will conclude with an open discussion.

The last part of February 2012 and March 2012 was a busy time for both Congress and the Obama Administration. On the tax reform front, President Obama led off with his plan for business tax reform. The House Republicans, on March 20, 2012, countered with their own Fiscal Year 2013 budget blueprint ("The Path to Prosperity") which, among other things, proposed a dramatically simpler income tax code including the repeal of the often-patched alternative minimum tax. The next day, Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) dropped his own tax reform bombshell by introducing legislation that would allow businesses with fewer than 500 employees to deduct 20% of their active business income (subject to certain limitations) in computing their "taxable income".

Reporting on a decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague that it has jurisdiction in a case involving environmental damage suits filed against Chevron by plaintiffs lawyers representing residents of Ecuador's Amazon region, WSJ reporter Isabel Ordonez wrote:

Please join us for this quick hitting lunch hour geared towards PEO business owners, chief executives and chief financial officers. Topics will include PEO benchmarking, hot tax topics and a financial accounting update. The webinar will conclude with an open discussion.

As we approach the end of another year, taxpayers need to be sensitive to year-end tax planning opportunities available to them in order to minimize their 2013 federal income tax liability. Hastening the need for such planning is not only the expiration of several tax benefits on December 31, 2013 (absent a decision by Congress to extend them) but also a new 3.8% excise tax on a taxpayer's "net investment income". In addition, the 2014 retirement benefit limitations recently published by the IRS can also offer year-end tax planning opportunities.

If a taxpayer has a tax liability they can't pay or if paying a tax liability would create a financial hardship, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and most states have programs that allow taxpayers to settle their tax debt for less that the full amount owed.

Over the past year, we have been inundated with the ACA (Affordable Care Act) and the various components of the law; whether it be the individual mandate, insurance exchange marketplaces, or employee notices. At this point, employers are gearing themselves for 2015 when the mandate will apply to employers that have 50 or more full-time employees. It is anticipated that as we get closer to January 2015, the activity level will reach a fever pitch as it did last year.

The complications and limitations of a national energy policy were aptly illustrated with the recently released Advancing Technology for America's Transportation Future report from the National Petroleum Council, representing two years of work by 300 industry and government participants.

Many employers classify some of their workers as "independent contractors" rather than as "employees". Doing so saves the employer from the withholding requirements for payroll taxes as well as the payment of the employer's portion of FICA, Medicare, and FUTA taxes which would otherwise be applicable to the workers' compensation if they were classified as employees. The IRS is on record, however, that many of those workers now classified as independent contractors should in fact be treated as employees for both employee payroll tax purposes as well as other employee benefits.

The Michigan Offices of UHY Advisors, a professional tax and advisory services firm, and UHY LLP, a certified public accounting firm, have gone green this past season by filing and sending out ninety-five percent of their returns electronicially.

There are several reasons a business owner plans an exit including retirement, liquidity, lack of generational succession, and diminished competitive position to name a few. All things considered, one could make a strong case that 2013 represents the optimal value for many middle market businesses.

Shareholder loans and the required accompanying documentation are facing increasing scrutiny by the IRS. Any potential deduction that may arise from a worthless shareholder loan must be substantiated by documentation confirming a valid loan exists. When entering into loan agreements with related parties it is important that all notes are expressed in the form of a written formal note, indicate a reasonable interest rate, and authorized in the corporate minute book. Besides having the written documentation, the taxpayer is also responsible to be sure that the terms of the note are being adhered to.

UHY Advisors, a full‐service national tax and consulting firm, will host an exclusive networking breakfast along with BlackLine Systems from 8:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, September 26 in their Farmington Hills office training facility. The event will feature multiple speakers to discuss the challenges organizations currently face in creating an efficient and effective record to report process and how new Finance Governance Technology (FGT) tools help address these challenges.

An American renaissance
November 1 2012
Join us on-site at UHY’s Farmington Hills office or on-line via webcast
On-site Program
8:30AM–11:45AM est
On-line Webinar
9:00AM–11:45AM est
Join us to learn more about the latest industry trends and rebirth of American manufacturing. Topics, speakers and keynote will be announced shortly.
CPE credit will be offered.

Thursday october 25, 2012
Join us at UHY’s Farmington Hills office
7:00am – 10:30am edt
Topics will include industry trends, bonding update and the latest financial and tax developments. Speakers will be announced shortly. CPE credit will be offered.

Please join us as we convene a panel of experts to discuss inbound investments into the BRIC countries including a general overview of the business climate and economic conditions, opportunities and potential threats of doing business in the country, tax issues and considerations, pitfalls when starting a business in the country, employment considerations, entity structure and tax planning considerations.

On Friday, July 31, President Obama signed into law the Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015. This act has several parts which include important tax compliance provisions.

U.S. persons with a financial interest or signature authority over a foreign financial account(s) for which the total of all foreign accounts is greater than $10,000 at any time during 2014 must file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (Form 114 - FBAR) by June 30, 2015. There are no extensions.

The Michigan Department of Treasury now provides an "offer in compromise" program that allows individual or business taxpayers with a tax liability to submit an offer to settle with the state for less than the full amount due.

The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (“HIRE”) Act, signed into law in 2010, included modified provisions of the previously proposed Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2009 (“FATCA”). These provisions involve two broad categories of tax compliance: reporting by foreign financial institutions on accounts held by U.S. persons, and reporting by U.S. individuals on specified foreign financial assets. It is the latter category that led to the new Form 8938 Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets, to be filed in 2012 as part of an individual’s 2011 federal income tax return.

It is that time of year when companies (“holders”) begin to ramp up their unclaimed property reporting activities. It is good business practice to assign one person at the company who is responsible for escheat compliance, and insert this responsibility in their job description to insure continuity.
Most unclaimed property reports and remittances are due to the states on or before November 1. These are the “fall states”. A few states are due in March, April or even July.

There have been many updates surrounding the Affordable Care Act ("ACA") with regards to guidance for employers. Most recently, is a written notice (the "Notice") that the ACA requires of many employers. The Notice must be provided by October 1, 2013 to all of the employer's current employees (whether full-time or part-time) and is intended to inform them of the health insurance coverage options available in the new Health Insurance Marketplace mandated by ACA.

With Congress only recently returned from recess, there is little in the way of current legislative developments. However, in the regulatory area, the IRS has issued final regulations dealing with the rules for deduction vs. capitalization of tangible property. These regulations are briefly summarized below.

For tax year 2014, the IRS recently announced annual inflation adjustments for more than 40 tax provisions, including cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) applicable to dollar limitations for pension and other retirement plans for 2014. The increase in the 2014 limitations results from an increase in the cost-of-living index.

Wealthy Americans considering giving up their citizenship to avoid higher taxes might want to hold on to their U.S. passports. Living aboard could result in bigger tax bills for Americans, especially if they want to buy an expensive abode.

This is a final reminder that ALL employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act are required to provide a written notice to their employees about the Health Insurance Marketplace (aka the Health Care Exchange) by October 1, 2013. This notice is required regardless of whether employers currently offer health insurance coverage or not.
Full Article: This is a final reminder that ALL employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act are required to provide a written notice to their employees about the Health Insurance Marketplace (aka the Health Care Exchange) by October 1, 2013. This notice is required regardless of whether employers currently offer health insurance coverage or not.

Were it not for the controversy stirred up by the IRS's recent disclosure that it has been subjecting various “Tea Party” groups to special scrutiny, May would probably go down as a fairly quiet month for federal tax developments. But more on that below. Before discussing the “Tea Party” dust-up, however, we want to bring your attention to some other more mundane developments in the world of federal taxation.

Identity thieves seek taxpayer identification numbers (TINs) for many purposes. During 2014, the Department of Justice reported that from 2008 through May 2012, over 550,000 taxpayers had their identities stolen by thieves claiming false tax refunds. In 2009, the IRS has tested the use of truncated social security numbers on certain payee statements. The IRS issued final regulations in July 2014, to make this program permanent. On a recent 60 Minutes airing, it has been predicted that the IRS will issue over $21 billion in fraudulent tax refunds from the filing of electronic income tax returns for the 2015 tax year.

UHY LLP in the US welcomes two new member firms in Ghana, Voscon Chartered Accountants and Douglas Godwinson World, to the global accountancy network UHY, of which our firm has been a member since 2001. Both firms will rebrand to UHY Voscon and UHY Godwinson respectively and are both based in Accra, the Ghanaian capital.

One of the key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was enacted by Congress and signed into law by President Obama in 2010, required each state to establish an "American Health Benefit Exchange" (sometimes simply referred to as an “Exchange" or the "Health Insurance Marketplace"). Exchanges are intended to permit those individuals without some other form of health insurance to purchase health insurance from competing private health insurance carriers that choose to participate in the Exchange.

Companies typically have thousands of vendors and all of them are trying to figure out a strategy to sell your company more and more of their goods or services. Often times, and especially common in many facets of the energy industry, a vendor starts to push the envelope in terms of gifts and entertainment, bid rigging, or vendor kickbacks that are the result of that vendor exploiting a relationship with someone at your company to obtain an unfair advantage over other vendors. Of course, even though we all hope that we don’t have employees that are looking for ways to obtain “extras” from vendors in exchange for directing work their way, employees can also be guilty of exploiting the vendor relationship. Unfortunately, in either case, few companies have robust processes and internal controls to detect and prevent such activities, which are mostly “off the books”.

Over the holiday weekend, UHY LLP sponsored the Distinguished Clown Corps float in the 88th America’s Thanksgiving Parade. The Parade is Detroit’s grandest and most anticipated civic event, the second largest Thanksgiving parade and the third largest parade in the country overall. First televised in 1948, The Parade is now broadcast nationally to more than 65 million viewers.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced a delay of approximately one to two weeks to the start of the upcoming tax-filing season, which is a result of the 16-day federal government shutdown. The original start date of when the IRS would begin accepting and processing tax returns was expected to be January 21, however, it now appears that start date will likely be sometime between January 28 and February 4.

Ongoing hacks and breaches of security lead businesses to continually question just how well protected their information really is. The unintentional—and often intentional—disclosure of personal and propreetary information is a real threat to most businesses. As technology evolves and new threats and challenges are created, it is becoming increasingly difficult for organizations to maintain adequate security levels.

On November 14, 2013, President Obama announced an "administrative fix" to the growing number of health insurance policy terminations announced for those individuals and companies in the small group market who had purchased their own health insurance policies. Some experts estimate that as many as 5 million persons have recently received notices from their insurers that the health policies under which they were covered in 2013 were being cancelled for the policy years commencing in 2014.

After the December holiday season (during which Congress was not in session), there are few tax legislative developments to report. At this time, Congress appears to be more concerned with political posturing than with taking action in the tax arena. The following are some recent developments:

The USA attracts FDI equivalent to 6.6% of GDP, compared to a 17% global average. The USA is lagging behind most major economies in terms of its ability to attract foreign direct investment, according to a new study by UHY, the international accountancy network.

UHY LLP, a leading national certified public accounting firm, recently announced a series of promotions; one managing director, six principals, seven senior managers, six managers, eleven senior accountants, eleven senior staff accountants, one client service associate and one technology specialist.

UHY LLP, a leading national certified public accounting firm, recently announced that one principal, Josh Kirkbride, has been promoted to partner. Also, six senior managers; Tom Bowen, Tim Brennan, Brent Jones, Michelle Moore, Kyle Percin and Aaron Witalec, have been promoted to principals.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) recently issued exposure drafts of accounting standards updates designed to reduce the cost and complexity of accounting for intangible assets acquired by private companies in business combinations.

The decision by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Quality Stores, Inc., et al., 110 AFTR 2d 2012-5827 (6th Cir., 2012), has opened the door to file a claim for refund for employers who have paid and withheld FICA taxes on "supplemental unemployment compensation benefits" ("SUB") which are a type of severance payments made as a result of an employee's involuntary separation.

Once again, we've reached the time of year that many entrepreneurs have come to dread: tax-filing season. Tax returns without extensions are due by March 16th for most corporations and April 15th for individuals and passthrough entities.

Three notable developments to report on for the month of February, 2014 are as follows. First, In President Obama's State of the Union address, he announced his intention to direct the Department of the Treasury to create a more accessible version of the traditional IRA, to be known as the MyRA. Secondly, the Regulation recently proposed by the Treasury Department to regulate the permitted political activities of IRC Section 501(c)(4) organizations (referred to in the Internal Revenue Code as "social welfare organizations") has created a furor of opposition by conservatives and liberals alike. And, thirdly, the new Chairman of the Senate's Finance Committee is likely to push for reinstatement of at least some of the tax breaks that expired on January 1, 2014.

On March 20, 2014, the IRS quickly responded to the Tax Court decision in Bobrow v.Commissioner stating that it anticipates following the Bobrow decision on IRA Rollovers. The IRS intends to clarify that the rules limiting IRA rollovers to one during a 12 month period should be applied on an aggregate basis.

As the United States was leaning over the edge of the "Fiscal Cliff", the Senate and the House passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (H.R. 8) on January 1, 2013, with President Obama signing the legislation into law on January 2, 2013.

As we get closer to January 1, 2013 and the looming "Fiscal Cliff", Congress and President Obama are stepping up their negotiations in an attempt to reach some sort of agreement. As of the date of this article, there is still no agreement. However, Congress has already decided to work through the week of December 17 in an effort to hammer out an agreement on the pressing tax and spending issues.

UHY LLP, a leading certified public accounting firm, is hosting its annual Accounting & Regulatory Update at the MSU Management Education Center in Troy on Wednesday, December 5. This complimentary full-day program is geared towards CFO’s, audit committee members and chairs, to learn more about the latest accounting, regulatory, legal and SEC updates. CPE credit will be offered, including an hour of ethics.

Global accountancy network UHY releases its 2015 “Global Transfer Pricing Guide” to assist tax and finance professionals responsible for cross-border tax planning and compliance with their inquiries. Given the complexity of transfer pricing issues, the guide provides in the first instance a country-by-country summary of major transfer pricing requirements, including pricing methods, documentation and penalties covering 80 countries.

NEW YORK, NY (August 7, 2012) – UHY Advisors NY, Inc. today announced it is teaming up with CFO Alliance to address the needs of middle market company executives who are seeking innovate ways to support corporate decision-making against the backdrop of unsettled market conditions. The new partnership between UHY and CFO Alliance provides a national, collaborative platform for finance leaders and experts to openly discuss, debate, and dissect critical opportunities.

As the temperatures start to rise in July 2012, so does Congressional posturing over the future of federal tax policy. Both the Democrats and the Republicans are on record as being in favor of tax reform, but they remain far apart on just what type of reform is best for the country. This issue will highlight some of the present differences in their respective tax reform visions as demonstrated by the bills they have most recently introduced. We will also discuss the increase in Medicare taxes facing many Americans beginning in 2013, now that, at least for the present, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (sometimes referred to as the 2010 Health Care Reform Act) is still with us, based on the recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court upholding the Act's constitutionality.

Local municipal governments in Michigan hurt deeply during the recent recession find their revenues lagging former collection levels. The major source of income for most municipalities is property tax revenue which has dropped approximately 32% since 2007. In addition, a significant decline in state revenue sharing has stretched most local governments to the breaking point as they continue to strive to provide necessary services to the public.

June 2012 was another relatively quiet month on the Tax front. The principal developments involved (1) an unexpected, but welcomed, relaxation of the rules that the IRS follows in evaluating Offers in Compromise, (2) ASPPA's opinion that any fundamental tax reform, or even tax reform aimed at taxing tax-qualified retirement contributions, will probably not happen in 2012, and (3) a proposal by the Republicans to make Health Care Flexible Spending Accounts more taxpayer friendly. These developments are discussed below:

The determination of whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor is an important decision for businesses owners to make. Hiring workers can involve potential liabilities and added reporting requirements, while the improper classification of a worker as an independent contract, rather than an employee, can result in severe penalties from the IRS and Department of Labor. In an effort to simplify this determination the State of Michigan has announced implementation of the IRS’ 20-Factor test.

The FBI recently announced two electronic identity theft scams that are flourishing. The first scam is through your mobile phone. Smartphone users should be aware of scams that target Android operating mobile devices by infecting them with malware programs, leading to identity theft. Fraudsters trick victims to click on links with advertisements which lead them to websites that will embed malware on their device.

Between the last three quarters of 2013 and first quarter of 2014, UHY LLP's Michigan offices added 69 employees to their team. The Michigan offices were excited to welcome their biggest hiring class of interns and staff accountants on Monday, January 6. The orientation training was held in the Farmington Hills office.

The US Technical Advisory Group (TAG) for International Standards Organization Technical Committee (ISO/TC) 260, a professional organization charged with the development of Human Resource Management standards has recently appointed Krystyna Smutek, HRIS Manager of UHY Advisors, Inc. as its newest member.

Tariffs are a form of tax that restrict trade and increases the cost of doing business with a foreign supplier. There are several types of tariffs in existence that the government can use to tax imported goods. Some of the different types of tariffs used by our government today are specific tariffs, which are a flat fee for each individual unit being imported based on the type of product it is. There are ad valorem tariffs, which are tariffs that are levied based on a percentage of the goods value. Tariffs do more than just keep pricing fair, they are used by the governments to protect consumers, domestic employment, and national security, and at times can be used as retaliation.

Taxpayers and preparers can expect to see a new check box on a familiar form in 2015. Just last week, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued the 2015 version of Form 1099-MISC. This most recent version features a new check box to identify foreign financial institutions filing to satisfy their FATCA (Federal Account Tax Compliance Act) reporting requirements.

Congress and the President have put forward their competing visions of fundamental tax reform. Representative Dave Camp
(R-MI), the current Ways and Means Committee Chairman, introduced on February 26 his "Tax Reform Act of 2014." President Obama unveiled his $3.9 trillion budget for the 2015 Fiscal Year (October 1, 2014 - September 30, 2015) on March 4. In his Budget, the President called on Congress to immediately begin work on corporate tax reform that will close loopholes, lower the corporate tax rate, strengthen investment and not add to the deficit.

Recently, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in McLauchlan v. Commissioner, 5th Cir., Case No. 12-60657, that a law firm's partner could not deduct various business expenses incurred personally because they were reimbursable by the firm pursuant to the partnership agreement. The expenses which were reimbursable by the partnership included reasonable travel, client maintenance and development, interoffice travel, automobile lease and rental expenses, meals and entertainment, and continuing education.

The US Senate approved legislation, which the House already passed, to extend for one year more than 50 tax provisions that had expired at the end of 2013. The pending retroactive enactment of this legislation will impact the 2014 taxes for many individuals and businesses.

With the signing of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) in March 2010, one area of the law that was not greatly discussed at the time was a new health care organization known as an Accountable Care Organization (ACO).

After a busy March with regard to federal income tax proposals, Congress's interest in this issue has waned somewhat. There are, however, still some recent developments from Washington regarding tax matters.

On April 4, 2014, the IRS issued IRS Notice 2014-19 with new guidance to sponsors of qualified retirement plans on what steps they should take to ensure their compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. Windsor ("Windsor"). By way of background, on June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Windsor dramatically affected the rights of same-sex spouses under federal law, especially their rights under qualified retirement plans in which one of the spouses participates.

Chief Justice Roberts delivered the 6-3 decision on King v Burwell, stating that premium tax credits under Code Sec. 36B aren't just limited to taxpayers residing in states that have health insurance exchanges. The High Court ruled that health insurance subsidies, designed to make health insurance affordable for qualified taxpayers, are also available to taxpayers in states which only offer the Federal Facilitated Exchange. This highly-anticipated decision could have changed the face of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Employers in 15 states (and the Virgin Islands) may not be eligible to claim the maximum amount of state unemployment tax credits on their 2014 federal unemployment tax return because their state has had an outstanding federal unemployment insurance loan for at least two years.

The USA enjoys some of the lowest gasoline pump prices among the major world economies, according to a new study by UHY, the international accountancy network. UHY explains that the USA has an extremely low tax rate on fuel, levying just 13% on gasoline and 12% on diesel, considerably less than many other major developed economies, in particular European countries.

The first major phase of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) came into effect as of January 2014. The individual mandate was implemented requiring all citizens of the United States to have medical coverage or face a financial penalty. Depending upon their number of full-time employees/equivalents, large employers will not have to comply with the employer mandate until 2015/ 2016.

The Department of Treasury has notified taxpayers in a recent letter about the new online method for filing sales, use and withholding taxes. For those who may not have received the notification, beginning in January 2015, all sales, use and withholding taxpayers will be required to register online in order to e-file returns and electronically pay taxes.

As more and more companies become multi-state, the terms of what creates nexus with a state are consistently changing. Nexus is one of the tests a company must go through to determine if they are required to file a return for the state. Michigan has gone through an overhaul of the taxing structure, moving recently from the Michigan Business Tax (MBT) to a more simplified method of reporting, the Corporate Income Tax (CIT). As part of the CIT nexus determination, the newly released Revenue Administrative Bulletin (RAB) 2013-9 defines the term "Actively Solicits" for purposes of determining if a taxpayer has nexus with Michigan.

Last month, the AICPA released a new financial reporting framework (FRF) for small and medium-sized entities (SMEs) that are privately-held and not required to report under US GAAP. This FRF is not intended to be a replacement for US GAAP when US GAAP reporting is required.

The U.S. Congress is considering legislation that would revive dozens of tax breaks that expired on January 1, 2014. Different bills are working their way through the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. House Republicans are pursuing a somewhat different, and more aggressive, approach than the Senate. They propose not only to extend many of these tax breaks, but to make some of them permanent.

On February 10th, the IRS issued final regulations that give employers who have 50-99 full-time employees until 2016 to comply with the employer mandate rules of the ACA. (These rules are discussed further below.)This is the second time that this mandate has been deferred. Employers with 100 or more employees must comply with the law as of January 1, 2015. These deferrals are welcome by most employers, but continue to add complexity to a law that most people do not understand.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced that a number of services that required the direct contact of an IRS representative will transition at the beginning of 2014 to more automated resources. The services being affected include tax return preparation, transcript delivery, tax law assistance, refund inquiries, EIN applications, and practitioner priority services.

There is still not a great deal of federal tax news to report given the extensive time spent by Congress during late September and much of October in addressing the funding of the government's current operations and also extending the nation's borrowing authority.

UHY Advisors MI, Inc. was presented the “Community Re-Investment Business of the Year” award by Oehmke and Sterling Heights Economic Development Manager, Barry Hicks, at the May 21 Michigan Week Business Luncheon and Sterling Edge Awards event at the Best Western Plus Sterling Inn in Sterling Heights. The chamber recognizes UHY for our expansion and reinvestment into the community and city of Sterling Heights throughout the years.

The financially stressed city of Flint may soon be facing the prospect of being the second major city in Michigan to file for Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy protection. A retiree lawsuit recently filed to stop the city from enacting proposed health care benefit cuts may push the city into insolvency.

Private business owners who own the building or property their company uses routinely set up separate legal entities to own these buildings and properties that are then leased to the operating company.

The IRS has issued temporary and proposed regulations allowing taxpayers that did not claim a research and development credit on a timely filed return (including extensions) to elect the alternative simplified credit ("ASC") on an amended return.

The Private Company Council (PCC) has finalized two proposed accounting standards that would provide alternatives within US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) for private companies. These two standards mentioned address accounting for certain interest rate swaps and accounting for goodwill subsequent to a business combination. The proposed standards have been sent to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) for endorsement as final Accounting Standards Updates.

According to the Internal Revenue Service's Technical Advice Memorandum (TAM 201347020), a professional employer organization (PEO) is not eligible to claim the income tax credit for portion of employer social security taxes paid with respect to employee cash tips received by its clients' employees in connection with the providing, delivering, or serving of food or beverages for consumption.

As another year end approaches, Congress and Treasury are addressing tax reform projects, while the Affordable Care Act marketplace troubles are, hopefully, being resolved. The following are some recent developments:

Last summer, the IRS listed new guidelines for Large Business & International (LB&I) examiners and specialists to follow related to Information Document Requests (IDRs) for LB&I companies under IRS examination. Any corporation, subchapter S corporation or partnership will be subject to the LB&I guidelines if their assets are greater than $10 million. Earlier this month, the IRS issued a directive which provides guidance on the new IDR enforcement process that will be effective January 2, 2014. The main focus of the new process is to clearly identify and state the issue that has led to the IRS examination of the LB&I company.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board are developing a converged standard regarding revenue recognition that is expected to have an effect on all entities that adhere to US GAAP or IFRS. The standard is expected to be released in the first quarter of 2014.

On December 20, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") issued a staff report to Congress regarding its disclosure rules for US public companies (Regulation S-K), which was mandated by Congress in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups ("JOBS") Act of 2012 and provides a framework for disclosure reform.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) recently endorsed a GAAP exception for private companies and their treatment of goodwill, marking a milestone in the work to provide simpler, less costly rules for private companies while producing financial statements that reflect economic reality.

The USA is falling behind Europe and China in the race to capitalize on globalization and could potentially miss out on future economic growth as a result, according to a new survey by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

Due diligence is the process of investigations and analysis into the details of a company prior to an acquisition of its shares or assets or in preparation of an IPO. While financial, legal, operational, and income taxes of the company are generally considered, state and local non-income based taxes should not be left out of the analysis. These taxes are sometimes the reason a buyer decides not to proceed further, yet this is an area that is often overlooked.

After 2012, taxpayers with wages in excess of $200,000 ($250,000 if married filing jointly and $125,000 if married filing separately) are required to pay an additional 0.9% Medicare tax. This tax is in addition to the regular Medicare tax rate of 1.45% on wages received by employees.

UHY LLP welcomes new member, Mont Audit Plus, in Montenegro to the global accountancy network UHY, of which our firm has been a member since 2001. Mont Audit Plus was established in 2007. With a team of 12 staff including 4 partners, the firm’s head office is based in Podgorica, the capital city. The firm provides audit, consulting, assets’ and capital valuations, tax counseling and accounting services to a portfolio of clients in a variety of private and public sectors in the region.

Late afternoon on February 10, 2014, just seven months after its initial delay, the Treasury Department has granted additional transition relief from the employer shared responsibility provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Now, mid-sized employers (defined as those with 50 to 99 full-time employees) will be given until January 1, 2016 before the employer mandate takes full effect.

UHY LLP welcomes new member, McKenzie Shaw Ltd. in Qatar to the global accountancy network UHY, of which our firm has been a member since 2001. The firm will be operating under the UHY branding as UHY Ammo & Co.

What are disruptive technologies, you ask? The term was first used by Harvard Business School professor Clayton M. Christensen to describe a new technology that unexpectedly displaces an established technology. In his book, The Innovator's Dilemma, Christensen separates new technology into two categories: sustaining and disruptive. Sustaining technologies are based on incremental improvements to an established technology, whereas, disruptive technologies can be defined as "simple, convenient-to-use innovations that initially are used by only unsophisticated customers at the low end of markets". Christensen has stated that large companies tend not to pay attention to these disruptive technologies because they don't satisfy the demands of high-end users - at least, not at first.

On January 14, 2014, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in United States v. Quality Store. This ongoing case questions whether severance payments made to employees whose employment was involuntarily terminated are considered wages and subject to tax under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA).

Since March 23, 2010 we have been inundated with issues regarding the Affordable Care Act. Whether it be ACOs (Accountable Care Organizations), grandfathered plans or essential benefits, the media has flooded the market with this information. Because of all the focus on the ACA, employers have lost sight of two Federal programs that have been around for many years: the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

A conundrum facing companies starting business activities in the U.S. is the confusing world of sales and use taxes. Having spent their economic lives under the value added tax scenario, sales and use taxes may seem incomprehensible. In this article we will note those areas of differences and help demystify the state tax regime faced in the U.S.

Effective the first quarter of 2014, the Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) will neither mail nor accept a hard copy of Form UIA 1028, "Employer's Quarterly Wage/Tax Report", from employers identified as having more than five employees. Starting with the first quarter filing due on April 25, 2014, it is a requirement that the contribution and wage information be filed electronically for employers with more than five employees. Interest and penalties will be assessed to those not filing by electronic submission.

Although the House of Representatives has approved a bill that would make the 50% bonus depreciation deduction permanent, there is still no indication of when dozens of tax breaks that expired on January 1, 2014 will be re-instated.

The Michigan Supreme Court has made the determination that a purchaser of tangible goods in Michigan is liable for use tax when the taxpayer was unable to prove during an audit that sales tax was paid on the purchases.

The scandal at the Department of Veterans Affairs is a disappointment on many levels, and there is no lack of solutions being offered to fix it. Since this began, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and other high ranking officials have stepped down. But while making changes to senior management might fix some of the problems, that kind of top-down approach will not yield any substantive change. There are clearly some fundamental processes at the VA that are broken. The way to really fix them, and to institute real change that’s sustainable, is by working up from the bottom.

UHY Advisors, a financial, tax and business consulting firm, on September 12 was named one of the top 100 Best Places to Work in Atlanta. The firm was ranked #50 on the Best Places to Work list in the small business category. The coveted distinction is earned by Atlanta companies – small, medium and large – across a variety of industries.

Due diligence is the corner stone of any investment. We check the reviews and ratings on everything we purchase. When was the last time you went out to eat without checking the restaurant rating on yelp.com or watched a movie without checking the tomatometer on rottentomatoes.com? We want to make the best use of our time, energy and most importantly, money. Getting into any transaction with all the pertinent information helps us make the right decision.

The late former mayor of New York City, Ed Koch, used to ask people on the streets of NY “How ’m I doin’?” I feel now is the time to look back on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to see how it is doing. The one thing that needs no discussion would be the failure of the on-line enrollment system for the Federal market place exchanges. Clearly there are other aspects of the ACA that need to be looked at to see if the intention of the act came to fruition; such as coverage for dependent adults to age 26, elimination of the pre-existing condition clause on all health insurance plans, and formal coverage for all U.S. citizens.

In 1998, the Internet Tax Freedom Act was signed into law. The law bars federal, state and local governments from taxing Internet access and from imposing discriminatory taxes such as bit taxes, bandwidth taxes, and email taxes. The law also prohibits any multiple taxes on any electronic commerce.

UHY LLP, a leading national CPA firm with over 300 employees in Oakland and Macomb counties, is opening its third Michigan office in the heart of downtown Detroit’s financial district. UHY’s first Wayne County office will be open for business on the sixth floor of the Chrysler House (previously known as the Dime Building) sometime in November. The 23-story historic skyscraper is located at Griswold and Fort streets near Campus Martius Park.

On March 25, the U.S. Supreme Court in a unanimous decision held that severance payments (not tied to state unemployment benefits) made to employees whose employment was involuntarily terminated were subject to tax under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). (See United States v. Quality Stores, Inc., U.S., No. 12-1408, 3/25/14). This Supreme Court decision reverses the ruling issued in 2012 by the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Longtime employee Ralph Mirando has been named Partner at UHY LLP. Based in the firm’s New York City office, Mirando began his new role in March after serving the firm in various capacities over the past 12 years, most recently as a Tax Principal.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp released his proposed tax plan in early March. The document titled "The Tax Reform Act of 2014" included many provisions to change both business and personal tax reporting. Many of the provisions are aimed at simplifying the tax code and making things easier for US small businesses and American taxpayers.

​In recognition of the UHY Advisors New York, Inc. office's 50th anniversary, Time Warner Cable News aired their story in the Capital Region this week. The story was entitled “Capital Region Business Beat: Area’s Largest Accounting Firm Celebrates 50 Years.”

As of this writing, efforts by some members of Congress to revive dozens of tax breaks that expired on January 1, 2014 have stalled. However, there are still some items of interest in the federal tax arena worth mentioning.

The government has just recently made available the "Transitional Reinsurance Annual Enrollment and Contributions Submission Form" through their official government website. This document will enable health insurance issuers, and those company sponsored self-insured group health plans offering medical coverage, to comply with the required steps related to the Transitional Reinsurance Program as outlined in the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

As the year comes to an end, this would be the best time to plan for your annual tax bill. Many wait to complete their tax planning in April, right before they foot the bill but by then it is too late. We all know this is not the best planning strategy, but then again neither is waiting for tax reform.

UHY LLP, a certified public accounting firm, operates its charitable giving activities through UHY Cares, an independent nonprofit 501c3 organization. Cares, which was incorporated over five years ago, was an idea inspired by employees and is volunteer based. Through UHY Cares, employees are able to give back to the community, including helping individuals going through personal emergencies or hardships. UHY Cares Michigan has provided assistance to over 150 local charities and families and continues to grow this list every year.

Medical and dental practitioners are currently the target of choice for identity thieves. Recent articles in The Journal of the American Medical Association, Businessweek, and The Washington Post highlight the alarming increase of health care professionals that have been victimized this year by identity theft used to fraudulently obtain federal and state tax refunds.

Generally, when one thinks of Social Security, they tend to look at it as a government-run savings program. While many of the characteristics of Social Security are very similar to a pension, one aspect, survivor benefits, has a few wrinkles that need to be carefully evaluated to maximize the benefit.

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("ACA"). Although the ACA has not been fully implemented, some of its provisions have already taken effect.

On July 22, 2014, within two hours of each other, two Federal Appeal Court panels issued conflicting rulings regarding the payment of subsidies to certain lower income taxpayers purchasing health insurance under a health insurance exchange (i.e., marketplace) created by the federal government under the Affordable Care Act ("ACA").

As more and more industries turn to the Internet as a source to reach their consumers, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is making the research and development (R&D) tax credit more available. The IRS recently issued proposed regulations that would expand the amount of software projects eligible for the credit. Many of the online shopping and banking websites that were once considered "internal use software" will now be eligible for the R&D tax credit.

Due to the recent flooding in southeast Michigan, many businesses and individuals may be facing the loss or destruction of tax records. In the event of an IRS examination, the burden is on the taxpayer to prove any deductions claimed

UHY LLP, a member of the global accountancy network UHY, introduces the latest editions of UHY International Business – Issue 29 Issue 29. This bi-annual publication features fresh insight, provided by our members, on the most current business challenges and key issues faced by companies and individuals around the world.

Bank lending to the private sector in the US has stagnated in the last year, down by 0.13% in real terms, and continuing to fall behind the rest of the G7, according to a new study by UHY, the international accountancy network.

With Congress back in session, the political rhetoric regarding the economic impact of "corporate inversions" (i.e., tax-driven foreign mergers), and the best way to prevent them, became more pronounced. Discussions of reinstating certain tax deductions and credits that expired on December 31, 2013 also increased. These developments are discussed further below, but we lead off with a warning from the IRS about a current telephone scam.

The Michigan Legislature has passed Public Act 282 of 2014 that retroactively repeals the Multistate Tax Compact (MTC) and makes changes to the Michigan Business Tax (MBT). More so, the legislation negates the effect of Michigan's Supreme Court's recent ruling in the IBM case (International Business Machines v. Michigan Dept. of Treasury ("IBM") and the potential refund claims resulting from the court decision.

Hospitals and health systems have devoted significant time and resources to implement the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s guidance on building effective compliance programs.

According to the US Governmental Accountability Office, more than $5 billion of your hard earned dollars were mistakenly paid out to tax identity thieves in 2013. An IRS-estimated $24.2 billion (based on what it could detect) of fraudulent refunds were prevented from being mistakenly paid out.

Beginning in 2013, the state of Ohio created a new deduction for individuals owning a business, including interests in pass-through entities, such as partnerships, S corporations and limited liability companies. The Small Business Investor Income Deduction allows an individual to deduct 50% of the taxpayer's small business income subject to certain limitations and increases to 75% in 2014.

The Small Business Exemption was passed by the legislature in early 2014, exempting small business from Michigan personal property tax. The taxpayer must have less than $80,000 of true cash value for all business property in a particular taxing jurisdiction and file an affidavit claiming such exemption with the assessor no later than February 10 of each tax year.

With the November national elections just around the corner, Congress has little interest in passing new tax legislation. One new bill of note was introduced in late September by Senator Bernard Sanders (I - VT) and impacts the federal estate tax. Also, regardless of the lull in legislative action, it is still wise for individuals to start thinking about year-end tax planning.

Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties have been declared as federal disaster areas due to the damage caused by the severe storms and flooding in August. The declaration permits the IRS to postpone certain deadlines for affected taxpayers of the covered disaster areas.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) recently issued a cost-of-living adjustment for the Social Security taxable wage limit. For tax year 2015, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax will increase to $118,500 ($1,500 increase from 2014). The employee and employer tax rate will remain unchanged at 6.2%. Due to the increase in the wage limit, the maximum Social Security tax payable by an employee will be $7,347 ($93 increase from 2014).

UHY Advisors MI, Inc. has been voted by the Michigan Business & Professional Association (MPBA) as one of 2014’s best and brightest companies to work for in Metropolitan Detroit for the eleventh year in a row! Only companies that distinguish themselves as having the most innovative and thoughtful human resources approach can be bestowed this honor.

January 1, 2015 will usher in the next phase of the Affordable Care Act. This phase will be the employer mandate. Initially, the employer mandate was to take place this year; however, it was postponed due to the belief that it would cause increasing confusion in a marketplace that was already ripe with confusion.

On December 19, 2014 President Obama signed the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 ("TIPA" or "the Act") into law, which included a tax-advantaged savings program for persons with disabilities.The program, known as the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014, provides for the following:

In the past several years, the IRS has been vigorously pursuing taxpayers who fail to comply with foreign reporting requirements, imposing severe penalties for noncompliance. Therefore, as we begin a new year in 2015, it is important taxpayers are reminded of the forms they are required to file, and informed of foreign reporting requirements they may be unaware of.

The risk of fraudulent activity within a company is nothing new. According to the Journal of Accountancy, losses from fraud can total approximately 5 percent of annual revenues for a typical company. Over the years, Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) and the Dodd-Frank Act have encouraged employers to address fraud through the development of a company-wide whistleblowing program. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners recently reported that most cases of internal fraud were discovered in 2014 through employee tips, ranging from 34 to 45 percent of instances, based on the size of the company.

Earlier this year the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), responsible for U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP), and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), responsible for International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), issued jointly a converged standard on the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers that will supersede virtually all revenue recognition guidance currently in US GAAP and IFRS. The new standard was issued to address a number of concerns regarding the complexity and lack of consistency surrounding the accounting for revenue transactions.

During the holiday season, a time for gifts and celebrations, it is important to remember the true meaning of this special time; generosity and kindness. UHY Cares Michigan, a nonprofit 501c3 organization founded by accounting firm UHY LLP, partnered with Angels of Hope Family Cancer Foundation and Volunteers of America to give a merry Christmas to some families who otherwise would not have had one. Cares sponsored 18 local families for the holidays and raised nearly $20,000 through employee raffles, jean days, bake sales, luncheons and partner matches. Over 30 volunteers from UHY’s Farmington Hills and Sterling Heights locations joined forces to shop, wrap and deliver gifts and holiday cheer to 85 people from the metro Detroit area.

In late December 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued an accounting standards update, ASU No. 2014-18: Accounting for Identifiable Intangible Assets in a Business Combination. Under current accounting standards, the acquirer of a company is required to recognize most assets acquired and liabilities assumed in a business combination at their acquisition-date fair values, including all intangible assets that are identifiable. Companies may now elect an accounting alternative for recognition of certain intangible assets acquired.

Guidance has been issued by the IRS's Small Business/Self-Employed Division regarding collecting taxes that were due to be paid, but were not paid, by a PEO with respect to wages paid before April 1, 2014.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), one of the nation’s leading professional services firms, announces the designation of Robert Bauer, Thomas Callan, Howard Foote, Michael Mahoney, Steven McCarty and Steven Wendling to serve on the firm’s board of directors. Joining these leaders on the board is the firm’s chief executive officer, Anthony Frabotta. This seven member board is charged with the stewardship of UHY Advisors, guiding its corporate strategy, reviewing and approving annual budgets, and appointing and monitoring the performance of the CEO. Their terms of office commenced October 1st.

When an individual transfers real estate in the state of Michigan a real estate transfer tax fee is charged, which is percentage of the sales price. This fee is assessed both by the state and the county in which the property was sold. This fee is the seller's responsibility, unless otherwise agreed upon, and is reported on the "Real Estate Transfer Valuation."

When was the last time you looked at your buy/sell agreement? Chances are it's been a while. Some of you may not even know where your buy/sell agreement is or worse yet - don't have one at all. The purpose of such an agreement is to establish a process by which shareholders of a privately held business can both create liquidity in their shares and limit exposure to unintended shareholders upon a specific triggering event such as the death of a shareholder.

Accountants rely on Microsoft Excel to handle multiple functions of their everyday responsibilities. While Excel is a lot more time efficient than using work papers and a pen or pencil to make calculations, it is not a completely fool proof system. However, Excel has recently made improvements to decrease the amount of corrupt files and loss of data, including risk and analysis solutions and spreadsheet management.

Retrospectively, reporting measurement period adjustments to amounts recognized in business combinations will soon be a thing of the past. Stakeholders shared that the cost outweighed the benefit and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) listened. On Friday, Sept. 28 the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2015-16, Business Combinations (Topic 805): Simplifying the Accounting for Measurement-Period Adjustment, as part of its simplification initiative.

The Department of Treasury has announced for transactions occurring on and after Oct. 1, 2015, out-of-state retailers are required to remit sales or use tax on sales into Michigan if the seller has nexus under affiliate and click-through nexus requirements.

Over 20 employees from UHY LLP, certified public accountants, in conjunction with UHY Cares, the firm’s nonprofit 501c3 organization, teamed up with others from Citizens Bank to teach the Junior Achievement Program to over 400 students from kindergarten to fifth grade at the Academy of Warren. The Academy of Warren represents a collaborative community of teachers, school administrators and the Parent Advisory Board (PAB), all with a common goal of seeing the students succeed and creating “worlds of opportunity” for each student.

While the external auditor has a responsibility to maintain objectivity and independence during an audit, the audit committee is also charged with several responsibilities. Overall, the audit committee must oversee the external auditor and the quality of the auditor's work. Specifically, only the audit committee can negotiate and agree upon audit fees, determine the scope of the audit work to be performed, and make recommendations and appointments of auditors.

On Sept. 17, the House Ways and Means Committee passed a bill to make 50 percent bonus depreciation a permanent part of the tax code. The important capital investment incentive expired at the end of 2014. Prior to the August congressional recess, the Senate Finance Committee approved reinstating 50 percent bonus depreciation and increased Sec. 179 levels ($500,000 allowance and $2 million phase out) for two years (2015 - 2016).

The IRS recently announced the 2016 retirement limits. These limits are adjusted each year based on the cost of living index and, due to low inflation, most retirement limits will remain the same as 2015.

According to a recent study by UHY International, new business creation in the USA is trailing behind the global average, with the number of new businesses created up just 11% since 2010,* shows a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network. The global average increase was 26%, between 2010 and 2014.

After her presentation at the third annual Mark R. Solomon Tax Symposium at Walsh College, discussing the tax issues related to cloud computing, DBusiness asked Susan Wagner to write an article for the publication's "Guest Blog" section on their website.

For the second consecutive year, UHY LLP sponsored the Distinguished Clown Corps float in the 89th America's Thanksgiving Parade. Over 70 feet long and standing 17 feet tall, the DCC float is the centerpiece of the 180+ Distinguished Clowns greeting and entertaining hundreds of thousands of spectators.

UHY LLP, member of the global accountancy network UHY, introduces UHY Global. UHY member firms understand the choices and challenges clients face in a fast-moving and competitive world full of opportunities and risks. Through UHY Global, we want to share a little of the diversity, the thinking and the difference that a truly global team can make.

UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network, has elected Bernard Fay as the new chairman of UHY, following 17 years as a UHY Board Director. With Bernard’s election, the UHY network will be led for the first time by a Director from outside its founding countries, the USA and UK, reflecting the increasingly international mix of the work undertaken by member firms. Bernard Fay has been on the UHY Board for nearly two decades and plans to lead expansion of the network’s footprint, focusing on UHY’s unique strengths: its people and their collaborative spirit.

The IRS recently released Notice 2016-4 in which the Service has extended the due date for companies required to distribute Forms 1095-B Health Coverage, or 1095-C Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage. Employers and insurance providers alike will now have until March 31, 2016 to distribute Forms 1095 to their respective individuals, the previous deadline was February 1, 2016. The timing for filing these forms with the IRS has also been extended from February 29, 2016 to May 31, 2016, and slightly longer for those companies required to submit their forms electronically. The automatic extension was granted to provide companies additional time to implement the new systems and procedures necessary to accurately report health care coverage information to the individuals and the Service.

In an effort to further reduce taxpayers' administrative burden, the IRS has raised the de minimis safe harbor for capital expenditures from $500 to $2,500. The change comes as a direct result of feedback received during a public comment period during which the Treasury Department and IRS formally requested comments on whether the safe harbor limit should be raised, and if so by how much.

IT security is a growing threat for businesses of every type and no organization is safe. While information security risks have been around for a long time (several Civil War battles were decided by details obtained by the enemy), today they bring with them challenging complexities and costly ramifications for businesses.

In November 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2015-17, Income Taxes (Topic740): Balance Sheet Classification of Deferred Taxes, to simplify the presentation of deferred income taxes. Under current GAAP when a classified balance sheet is presented, deferred tax liabilities and assets are separated into a current amount and a noncurrent amount generally on the basis of the classification of the related asset or liability for financial reporting. The Board determined that the current presentation under GAAP does not provide users of financial statements with useful information as the classification between current and noncurrent generally does not reflect when a temporary difference will reverse and become a taxable or deductible item.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), one of the countries most respected professional services firms, announces the merger of MohnAllen PC, a CPA firm located in Olney and Frederick, MD, effective today.

On Dec. 8, 2015, the IRS launched the Early Interaction Initiative to identify employers who appear to be falling behind on their payroll or employment taxes, and help them stay in compliance to avoid interest and penalty charges.

People always say there are two guarantees in life - death and taxes. While that may be true, you can escape a lot of tax when you pass away. The "portability" rules provide for the transfer of a deceased spouse's unused estate tax exemption (deceased spousal unused exclusion or "DSUE"). In 2015 the exemption amount is $5,430,000; therefore if the decedent's taxable estate is not more than the exemption amount, the DSUE can be used by the surviving spouse with respect to both gift taxes and estate taxes.

At its Dec. 15, 2015 meeting, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) adopted new rules that provide audit firm transparency to public company investors. The rules require audit firms to disclose information regarding certain audit participants in public company audits.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), one of the nation’s leading professional services firms, announces the appointment of five new managing directors: Brad Baer, Harold Mohn, Robert Scope, Mehmet Sengulen and Aaron Witalec. Scope and Witalec are both from the Michigan practice.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), one of the nation’s leading professional services firms, announces the appointment of five new managing directors: Brad Baer, Harold Mohn, Robert Scope, Mehmet Sengulen and Aaron Witalec.

Businesses in the US are paying out 8.8 percent of their employees’ annual salaries in social security and other so-called employment “taxes”, according to a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

Recently in Washington D.C., Jeff Solis PEO Practice Leader at UHY LLP, and other industry leaders met with representatives from the IRS and the US Treasury to address details included in the Small Business Efficiency Act (SBEA).

In September 2015, the IRS issued a proposed regulation that would have provided charitable organizations an alternative method for substantiating charitable donations. The proposed regulation was going to permit, but not require, charitable organizations to complete and file a new, optional form in order for a donor to receive a deduction.

Projects like building the Detroit Red Wings a new stadium in downtown Detroit, take a lot of hours and manpower from local construction contractors, and could end up costing them in the long run, especially contractors in the immediate area. After breaking ground in 2014, crews are on-site working six days a week to ensure that the arena will be ready to host Red Wings fans along with fans in the away colors by 2017.

All sales tax and use tax filers must file the annual return, Form 5081, for each year even if no tax is due. For taxpayers who submit monthly or quarterly returns, Form 5081 balances the tax due for the year with the monthly or quarterly payments made during the year.

Statements and reports for domestic and foreign limited liability companies and professional limited liability companies must be filed online by Feb. 15, 2016, or if mailing instead, received by Feb. 15. A $50 late filing penalty will be assessed for 2016 annual statements and annual reports received after Feb. 15.

On Jan. 7, 2016, the IRS added new frequently asked questions (FAQs) to its website on the streamlined offshore compliance program, which includes guidance to participants in Canadian registered retirement savings plans (RRSP), registered retirement income fund (RRIF) or other similar Canadian retirement plans. Generally, an individual who is a citizen or resident of the US and a beneficiary of a Canadian retirement plan may be subject to US tax on accrued income in the plan even though the income is not currently distributed to the beneficiary.

In 2016, the estate/gift tax exemption has increased to $5.45 million for federal tax purpose. There are many factors to take into consideration to avoid unintended tax consequences and prepare for an orderly transfer of assets. Below are four tax-friendly reminders to consider while planning for your estate.

The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH) was signed by President Obama on Dec. 18, 2015. Included in the many tax breaks and incentives that were "extended" by this bill was the reinstatement of the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The WOTC is a credit to employers who hire certain targeted groups of employees and is based on a percentage of the wages paid to those employees. The PATH Act even added a new category that will be available in 2016.

In 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) drafted an updated lease accounting standard to recognize lease liabilities on the balance sheet with corresponding right-of-use assets. In May 2013, The FASB issued a proposed Accounting Standards Update, Leases (Topic 842). Since the proposed standard was issued, FASB deliberated proposals in the May 2013 Exposure Draft. Recently, the Board updated the Standard for two items: an exception to the lease classification test and an effective date for adoption of the standard.

As tax-related identity theft has become more prevalent over the past five years, the IRS is taking steps to stop these fraudulent returns. Once the IRS confirms you are a victim, they will issue an Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) for the taxpayer to use when filing their return, whether they file electronically or on paper.

Before the New Year the IRS issued Notice IR 2015-137, updating optional standard mileage rates for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes. Taxpayers have the option to deduct the actual costs of using their vehicle, rather than the IRS standard mileage rates.

Congress is requiring a new informational return to be filed with the IRS to ensure there is a consistent reporting of the basis of assets between the estate tax return and the beneficiary receiving the asset. The IRS has finalized the Form 8971, Information Regarding Beneficiaries Acquiring Property from a Decedent. An executor or personal representative of an estate who filed a Form 706 (Estate and Generation -Skipping Transfer Tax Return) for a decedent, will be required to file Form 8971 with both the IRS and the beneficiaries of the estate. Form 8971 is only required for those estates where the total gross estate value exceeded the filing threshold requiring it to file a 706 return.

The era of procrastination is over. In its place we are entering a period of consequences.
Hackers are no longer targeting the Targets and Home Depots of the world. Increasingly, they’re targeting small and medium-sized businesses that have not gone through the risk and compliance efforts needed to protect themselves. As incidents of credit card hacks and data breaches mount, these businesses face increased compliance obligations and liabilities.

The IRS recently issued Notice 2016-22 that provides transitional relief to employers claiming the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The WOTC is a tax credit for employers that hire individuals that belong to one of nine different targeted groups including Veterans, Temporary Assistance Recipients, and Empowerment Zone residents. The President signed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (the PATH Act) in mid-December 2015 which retroactively reinstated the WOTC to Jan. 1, 2015 and extended it through Dec. 31, 2019. The Notice issued allows employers additional time to complete the IRS Form 8850 and Department of Labor Form ETA 9061 (or ETA 9062) because of this retroactive application.

The IRS has issued final regulations on the application of the rules that require certain domestic entities to annually report their interest in certain foreign assets effective for tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2015. Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, the IRS now requires specified domestic entities - partnerships, corporations, or trusts to also attach Form 8938 to their tax return.

As filing deadlines draw closer, the IRS and taxpayers continue to be a vulnerable target of several cyber-attacks. The tactics range from phone calls attempting to verify personal information, to fake emails, to network attacks. In a recent attack, hackers used previously obtained social security numbers to generate E-File Personal Identification Numbers (PINs).

In March 2016 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-07, Investments - Equity Method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323): Simplifying the Transition to the Equity Method of Accounting,
The update affects all entities that have an investment that becomes qualified for the equity method of accounting as a result of an increase in the level of ownership interest or degree of influence.

The Tax Foundation released a study called the International Tax Competitiveness Index, in which our great nation ranked 32nd out of 34 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in relation to tax competitiveness. The study compared tax systems using over 40 variables in five categories: corporate taxes, consumption taxes, property taxes, individual taxes and international tax rules. The study claims that the US individual income tax system is poorly structured, confusing and has high rates.

We welcome GUIÑAZU & ASOCIADOS SpA, our new member firm in Chile, to the global accountancy network UHY, extending our coverage within South America.
GUIÑAZU & ASOCIADOS SpA is based in Santiago and with a team of 32, including three partners, the firm provides audit, accounting, pay-roll, tax and management consulting services to a portfolio of local and international clients primarily in the manufacturing, service, education, engineering, construction and mining sectors.

We welcome El Sayed El Ayouty & Co, Certified Public Accountants, our new member firm in Bahrain, to the global accountancy network UHY, extending our coverage within the Middle East.
El Sayed El Ayouty & Co, formed in 1989, is based in Manama and with a team of 26, including two partners, the firm provides audit, accounting, management and legal consulting services to a portfolio of local and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) clients, primarily in the wholesale, manufacturing, real estate, contracting/trading and services sectors.

For those that have filed Form 5278, "Affidavit and Statement for Eligible Manufacturing Personal Property and Essential Services Assessment (ESA)", the local assessor's office has transmitted this information to the Department of Treasury to create an Electronic ESA Statement (Statement). The ESA is a State-specific tax on eligible personal property owned by, leased to or in possession of an eligible claimant as of Dec. 31 of the year immediately preceding the assessment year. The tax is collected by the State, not the local assessor's office. The Statement will be available for taxpayer viewing as of May 1 via the Michigan Treasury On-Line System (MTO).

The sudden death of pop icon and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, Prince, left fans all over the world weeping and cities paying their last respects with Purple Rain-themed tributes on buildings and stadiums. It was a death so unexpected that Prince has no known will.

A commercial activity tax (CAT) is imposed on most taxpayers doing business in Ohio that have taxable gross receipts in excess of $150,000. The CAT is not an income tax, but rather a tax based on sales transacted in Ohio.

The General Sales Tax Act exempts the "sale of rolling stock purchased by an interstate motor carrier or for rental or lease to an interstate motor carrier and used in interstate commerce." The Use Tax Act exempts "the storage, use, or consumption of rolling stock used in interstate commerce and purchased, rented, or leased by an interstate fleet motor carrier."

Businesses in the US are paying among the highest corporation taxes in the world at a rate well above the global average, reveals a new study by UHY, a leading international accounting and consultancy network.
According to UHY, the US’ corporation tax rate was 41.1 percent (combined federal and assumed state tax rate of 7.1 percent) on taxable profits of $1,000,000 for the financial year ending 2015*.

The IRS released temporary and proposed regulations for a the new voluntary certification program for PEOs. The application process is targeted to open on July 1. Under the IRS program, PEOs that apply will be required to meet certain requirements to gain certification. Click here to read the full article from Accounting Today.

After advising on Crain's Detroit Business' "Deal of the Year Under 100 Million" in 2015, UHY Advisors' Corporate Finance was also recognized for both buy-side and sell-side support on five other deals that made Crain's List of Largest Mergers and Acquisitions of 2015

Beginning Dec. 1, 2016, salaried employees making less than $47,476 a year or $913 a week will qualify for overtime pay for any work exceeding 40 hours. The new threshold doubles the current $23,660 threshold and would automatically make 35% of salaried workers eligible for time-and-a-half pay.

As consumers and businesses have begun receiving new credit and debit cards with shiny embedded microchips (known as EMV technology), many are unaware of the liability shift that occurred in 2015. As of October 2015, merchants that are not certified to accept EMV card transactions may be responsible for certain fraudulent charges, a change from standards that previously existed where the liability rested solely with the card issuer. Estimates indicate 94 percent of magnetic-only credit cards will be replaced by the end of 2016. As a result, businesses that accept credit cards face a dramatically different landscape compared to just a few short months ago.

The original filing deadline in February has been extended to Tuesday, May 31, to file Form 5278 or resubmit a Form 5278 that had been denied due to an incomplete form. The form must be received by the local assessor's office by the deadline and postmarks are not acceptable.

Various states offer tax amnesty programs throughout the year. The programs allow the taxpayer to file delinquent returns and waive penalties associated with late filings. The programs also limit the look-back period for outstanding tax returns. Taxpayers who believe they may have delinquent tax exposure should consider participating in the amnesty programs to limit their tax liability. Massachusetts and Alabama are now offering tax amnesty programs.

UHY LLP and Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC dusted off the equipment, sharpened the skates and pulled out the old sweaters to take on Talmer Bank & Trust in the fourth annual charity hockey game at Oak Park Ice Arena.

It has been all over the news as of late; presumptive GOP nominee and business mogul Donald Trump has been under fire after refusing to turn over his Federal income tax returns to the general public until after a routine audit by the IRS is completed. Although candidates are not required to publically release their tax returns the last seven presidents have. Trump has indicated in several interviews that he would do so after the audit ends, which may not happen before the election. So why is Donald Trump's tax return under audit?

In early 2015, the IRS transitioned its listing of automatic accounting method changes from the appendix of the general Revenue Procedure to its own separate Revenue Procedure, giving it the freedom to regularly issue new changes and modifications. On May 5, the IRS did just that in issuing Rev. Proc. 2016-29.

Many believed that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates in June, but a recent May hiring report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that may not be the case. The report from the Bureau showed that just 38,000 jobs were added to the US economy in May, the lowest monthly job gain since September 2010.

Do you have a financial interest in or signature authority over a foreign financial account, including a bank account, brokerage account, mutual fund, or other type of foreign financial account? If you do, and certain thresholds are met, then filing of FinCEN Form 114 Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts will be required to avoid substantial penalties.

As part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), one of the many excise taxes imposed by this act is again quickly approaching. The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee is an excise tax imposed on health insurance issuers and plan sponsors of self-insured health plans effective for plan years ending on or after Oct. 1, 2012. The fee is calculated at $2.08 per covered life for plan years ending after Oct. 1, 2014 but before Oct. 1, 2015 and increases to $2.17 per covered life for those plan years ending on or after Oct. 1, 2015 and before Oct. 1, 2016. This fee is due by July 31 each year with increases corresponding to the medical inflation rate all the way through the 2019 plan year.

Mass shootings that make headlines similar to what we saw as a result of the Orlando tragedy not only generate a nation-wide flood of donations for the victims and their families, but also a spike in scamming activities including attempts to gain money or private taxpayer information.

UHY Advisors convened a roundtable discussion among financial services industry professionals on Thursday, June 16th to explore the implications and causes of recent cyber bank heists. The roundtable, “Lessons Learned from Cyber Bank Heists,” launched UHY’s Financial Services Roundtable series and included compliance, risk management, internal audit, and technology managers from some of the world’s largest banks and financial services firms.

The US levies one of the lowest property purchase taxes in the world on prime real estate, charging on average 0.6 percent, or $6,000, in tax on a property purchase of $1 million, reveals a new study by UHY, a leading international accounting and consultancy network.
This is far lower than the global average of 3.3 percent ($33,038) for properties worth $1 million.
UHY says that by keeping taxes in this price bracket low, governments can encourage labor market mobility of senior executives and valuable overseas investment from High Net Worth individuals, although they also risk losing out on an attractive source of revenue.

Election Day will be here before you know it. Both presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have already disclosed some major changes they would like to make to our current tax system including tax brackets, estate tax and investment income.

Both the electronic filing PIN tool on IRS. gov and the toll-free phone service were shut down last week due to increased automated bot attacks on the platform. A similar increase was detected in February, but the service was kept online since it was the middle of tax season and the e-filing pin system was used in nearly all commercial tax programs.

The IRS recently issued Notice 2016-40 that provides transitional relief to employers claiming the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The WOTC is a tax credit for employers that hire individuals that belong to one of nine different targeted groups including Veterans, Temporary Assistance Recipients, and Empowerment Zone residents. The President signed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (the PATH Act) in mid-December 2015 which retroactively reinstated the WOTC to Jan. 1, 2015 and extended it through Dec. 31, 2019.

Last week the United Kingdom made a historical decision to leave the European Union, otherwise known as "Brexit" (a portmanteau of "British exit"). After a 52 to 48 percent vote to leave the EU, economists continue to reassure the public that the move will have a relatively small impact on the global economy as a whole.

The Budget Act of 2015, which was signed into law in November 2015, made major changes to the rules governing federal tax audits of partnerships. The legislative change repealed the partnership audit procedures commonly known as TEFRA (Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982). Generally, a partnership with eleven or more partners at any one time during the partnership's tax year is a TEFRA partnership. TEFRA audits are subject to additional administrative procedures during an IRS audit.

The Michigan Department of Treasury has recently issued guidance that has eliminated the requirement that flow-through entities (e.g., a partnership, S Corporation, or limited liability company) withhold income tax on a member's distributive share of income for tax years that begin on or after July 1, 2016. The new bill discontinues the flow-through entity's obligation to withhold taxes for their individual nonresident members, corporate members, and other flow-through entities.

When the skies are blue and the mercury tops 90, many of us turn to America's pastime, baseball, to distract us from our daily travails. But in recent years, America has developed a new pastime, watching and predicting what the Fed will do with interest rates. At the end of July, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting provided a couple of innings of data on what might be happening down the stretch of 2016.

You've spent time and money configuring your enterprise security software and have assured your stakeholders that this investment will help keep your data safe. What happens when the software that is supposed to protect your data winds up exposing it instead? This nightmare scenario is a reality for many businesses; possibly yours. Several versions of Symantec antivirus software were recently found to have multiple critical vulnerabilities that can expose all of your sensitive information to unknown third parties.

The Mortgage Credit Certificate program has issued a federal tax credit to first time homebuyers statewide. The homebuyer can credit 20 percent of their annual mortgage interest paid against their federal tax liability. This credit is good for the life of the mortgage. There are only certain mortgage companies that are participating in this program.

This is a reminder that the Form 5278, Essential Services Assessment (ESA), must be certified (approved) and paid by August 15. Taxpayers have been mailed notifications reminding them to complete the process via the MTO System (Michigan Treasury Online). Payment must be made online. No invoices pertaining to the ESA are being mailed to taxpayers.

Krystina Borrocci, 31, Director of Marketing at UHY LLP was honored in front of a crowd of her peers, alumni and donors of Wayne State University’s Mike Ilitch School of Business. It was at the school’s 36th Annual Recognition & Awards Program where she was awarded as the 2016 Emerging Leader along with two other honorees who received Executive of the Year (Nancy Schlichting) and Distinguished Alumnus (Mark Davidoff). Borrocci is the youngest alumnus to ever win this award.

In a recent speech at the Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, democratic Senator Charles Schumer of New York, called on the House to pass legislation that would give Olympic and Paralympic athletes a tax exemption on their Olympic medals and monetary bonuses. Schumer expressed that it was wrong to tax these athletes after earning a hard fought victory for the country.

On Aug. 4, 2016, The IRS issued proposed regulations that will dramatically affect your ability as a business owner to transfer wealth to the next generation in a tax efficient manner. The time to act is now as these changes could be in force by the end of this year. These regulations are currently open for public comments which could result in changes, however waiting may not be the most prudent option.

UHY LLP together with UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY”) has been recognized by INSIDE Public Accounting (IPA) as one of the top 10 fastest growing accounting firms of 2016. The ranking, determined by the IPA Annual Survey and Analysis of Firms, confirms an upward trend that UHY has been experiencing over many years.

If a distribution from a qualified plan or an IRA is not rolled over to another eligible retirement plan or IRA within 60 days, not only is the distribution generally taxable, but the distribution may also be subject to a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty. Up until now, if a taxpayer missed the 60-day rollover requirement, the only recourse was to request a waiver from the IRS via a letter ruling. Now, a new self-certification procedure (outlined in Revenue Procedure 2016-47) may allow taxpayers to qualify for a waiver of the 60-day retirement distribution rollover requirement without requesting a waiver directly from the IRS.

As the election draws nearer, more details of the candidates' economic plans are being unveiled. With this we can start to get a better idea of what our tax future may look like. Unfortunately, the majority of the proposed changes from each candidate are based on taxable income and are different for every situation. Below are the basics in no particular order.

We welcome, Ahmed Hassan Naeem Chartered Accountants, our new member firm in Afghanistan, to the global accountancy network UHY, extending our coverage within the Asia-Pacific region. The firm is in the process of adopting the UHY branding and will be known as UHY Ahmed Hassan Naeem, Chartered Accountants.

After a long primary season, it appears that the American people will have a choice between Hillary Clinton, the likely Democratic nominee, and Donald Trump, the likely Republican nominee. Despite the relative uniqueness of each candidate, there’s an old proverb that says the only thing we learn from new elections is that we learned nothing from the last one. In the summer of 2016, we once again face an election where the winner may dictate the future of health care in this country. It is important to understand each candidate’s stance on health care.

The FBI has issued a threat advisory to charitable organizations and nonprofits in the US and Canada. A Nigerian criminal network has already targeted more than two dozen organizations with a sophisticated, multi-step wire fraud scheme.

Recently, there's been an alarming rise in fraudsters attempting to file for unemployment benefits using stolen identities. For example, a company receives a notice from the Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) stating that 'Employee X' has filed for unemployment benefits, when in fact 'Employee X' is still a current employee with the company.

The IRS had twice extended the time period to submit paperwork for employers to claim the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) for qualified employees hired between the dates of Jan. 1, 2015 and Aug. 31, 2016. The extended due date for the submission of WOTC paperwork is Sept. 28, 2016.

Michigan is again offering reimbursement for specified costs related to training new and current employees. The Skilled Trades Training Fund (STTF) is used for short term training (3 months or less, unless an apprenticeship). This applies to ALL employers with a presence in Michigan; it is not industry specific. The employer must be in compliance with all federal and state tax obligations and willing to participate with the program's guidelines.

The IRS has reported that there have been many recent claims of fake CP2000 notices being sent to taxpayers indicating an amount due related to the Affordable Care Act. A CP2000 notice is normally sent to taxpayers when the income on their tax return does not match what has been reported by the third-party (such as an employer). In many cases, these fraudulent notices are being sent as an attachment to an email message.

If you are required to file partnership tax returns, C corporation tax returns, or foreign information reporting (FinCen 114/FBAR), the Surface Transportation Act of 2015 ("the Highway Act") brings some actionable news regarding revised filing deadlines effective for 2016 tax returns. The current partnership return deadline imposes a problem for many partners to timely file their returns by April 15. The partnership due date change may give more time for partners to include any Schedule(s) K-1 income and/or loss on their personal income tax returns and file by April 15.

According to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) report No. 2016-40-065, during the period February 2011 to December 2015, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) identified almost 1.1 million taxpayers who were victims of employment-related identity theft. Employment-related identity theft is when an identity thief uses a stolen social security number of a taxpayer when applying for employment.

Are you looking to buy a new property but haven't been able to sell your existing one? Or perhaps it would make more sense for you to keep your existing property while you make improvements to your new property? Do you want to defer the taxes on the sale of your existing property? If so, then you may be a candidate for a reverse like-kind exchange.

As 2017 approaches, retirement plan sponsors need to be prepared for the Department of Labor's recently modified rules that affect ERISA retirement plans (as well as individual retirement accounts and even some health savings accounts). Under previously implemented rules, some investment advisors of retirement plans (those that were generally compensated via commissions and mutual fund management fees) were not held to a fiduciary standard - requiring only that their advice be "suitable" to their clients. Under the new rule, which becomes effective April 10, 2017, most investment advisors to plans (regardless of the manner in which they are compensated) will be considered fiduciaries.

UHY Advisors, one of the most respected professional services firms in the country, welcomes Joseph Chivini as business development director. In this role, Chivini will lead the firm’s business development efforts in the Chicago market for the full range of services including attest, tax, management consulting and resource solutions offerings.

UHY Advisors and UHY LLP (“UHY”) announced that they will add to their portfolio in the Northeast with the acquisition of the professional services firm Pratesi, Salemi & Company LLC and the valuation firm Brentmore Valuation Advisors, located in West Hartford, Connecticut. Both firms will operate under the UHY banner effective November 4, 2016.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) recently announced a 2017 cost-of-living adjustment for the Social Security taxable wage limit. The maximum amount of earnings subject to Social Security tax for 2017 will increase by 7% to $127,200 from $118,500 in 2016.

As reported in Dykema's 2016 M&A Outlook Survey: For the first time since the 2008 survey, respondents said that US financial buyers topped strategic buyers for having the most influence on US deal valuation over the past year.

The Internal Revenue Service has announced the cost-of-living adjustments impacting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement related items for tax year 2017. While many limits remain unchanged, see below for the 2017 increases.

After the most significant election in our nation's history, the votes are in and Republican nominee, Donald Trump has been elected to become the 45th president of the United States. President-elect Trump's tax plan looks to reduce taxes across the board, including making the business tax rate more competitive and creating new opportunities to grow our economy. Before any proposed changes can be made, they must be approved by Congress.

It only took 10 years, but this summer the Department of Labor (DOL) announced sweeping changes to the federal overtime rules. The most significant change is raising the standard salary level by which salaried employees are now eligible for overtime pay. The new rules will go into effect December 1, 2016 and apply to both for-profit and non-profit entities.

Many accountants and users find that certain areas of the current NFP financial reporting framework are often difficult to navigate and interpret. This becomes especially apparent in the board room and at management meetings where financial statement literacy may not always be a core skillset for all members. In an effort to address some of these concerns among users, on August 18, 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2016-14, Not for Profit Entities (Topic 958): Presentation of Financial Statements of Not-For-Profit Entities.

New §501(c)(4) exempt organizations and their advisors need to be mindful of a requirement added to the Code under the PATH Act, enacted December 18, 2015. Under newly-enacted IRC §506 such organizations must electronically submit Form 8976 - Notice of Intent to Operate Under Section 501(c)(4) - within 60 days of formation. This form does not exist on paper and thus will not be found by searching at the IRS website. An individual desiring to electronically submit this form needs to establish an account at the IRS website and pay a user fee of $50 through www.pay.gov. Late filing can be penalized. (Rev. Proc. 2016-41).

On July 1 the user fee to process the Form 1023-EZ, Streamlined Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, was decreased from $400 to $275 (Rev. Proc. 2016-32).

As we prepare for the close of 2016 and begin planning for upcoming years, there are significant opportunities with regard to fixed assets, including the ability for taxpayers to immediately deduct 50% of non-residential building improvements.

As employers move into their second year of reporting under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the IRS has extended penalty relief and the due dates for ACA information reporting. Employers with 50 or more full-time employees will now have until March 2, 2017 (instead of Jan. 31, 2017) to issue their 2016 Form 1095-B or 1095-C to their employees and covered individuals. This extension does NOT apply to the employer reporting to the IRS with Form 1094 transmittal, which will remain at February 28 (March 31 if filing electronically).

Employers in California and the US Virgin Islands are the only jurisdictions subject to credit reduction for the 2016 tax year due to failure to pay off federal UI loans by Nov. 10, 2016. Employers in these jurisdictions face a 2016 federal unemployment tax that is 1.8 percent higher than employers not in credit reduction states.

In a ruling that has significant implications for many industries, on Nov. 22, a Texas federal judge dealt the US Department of Labor a major setback by preliminarily enjoining DOL's overtime rule which was set to go into effect on Dec. 1, 2016. The nationwide injunction means that employers do not have to comply with the rule on Dec. 1. Most employers have been actively planning or implementing changes with respect to how they compensate employees and classify them for purposes of overtime eligibility.

Recently, The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) outlined its priorities for tax reform legislation, as a major change is expected to take place. The release of these priorities comes as Republicans are pushing to pass legislation that overhauls the tax code next year. Republicans believe that 2017 is the perfect time to pass a tax reform bill as they will control both houses of Congress, as well as the White House, with the new administration.

With the release of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2016-09 by FASB, accounting for employee share-based payments will take a more simplified approach to both accounting and financial reporting. One change noted in the ASU is that any excess tax benefit that used to be recognized as additional paid-in capital is now to be recorded as income tax expense. Any tax deficiencies are now to be reported on the income statement and cannot be used to offset accumulated excess tax benefits.

The FBI has warned of a dramatic increase in targeted email attacks on company employees that appear to come from the CEO or other executive. These scams usually begin with the attackers compromising the executive's email account, or messaging from look-alike email addresses that may be one or two letters different from the real company email address.

Effective Jan. 1, 2017, minimum wage employees in Michigan will see an increase of 40 cents per hour from $8.50 to $8.90. For 2017 budgets that translates to an extra $16 per week per full-time employee, or $832 per year. The law, Public Act 138 known as the Workforce Opportunity Wage Act (WOWA) of 2014 took effect on May 27, 2014 when minimum wage was $7.90, which has gradually increased to the current $8.50

The political uncertainty surrounding Donald Trump will likely have a significant impact on individual tax planning. It is still unclear how Trump’s tax plan will be implemented and whether it will be approved of by the House Republican leadership. Adding to tax preparation uncertainty are other unknown factors including the 2017 rate structure, the repeal of Obamacare and the impact on the net investment income tax (NIIT), and limitations on deductions dictated by the alternative minimum tax (AMT) including the possibility of its repeal in 2017.

We are seeing the rise in identity theft, including in the unemployment benefits area. Unemployment identity theft not only causes inconvenience and loss of funds, it could result in wages being garnished, tax refunds being intercepted and more.

Last summer, proposed changes to Section 2704 of the Internal Revenue Code appeared to be tightly constraining the benefits of certain transfers of family-controlled business assets by eviscerating discounts that might be available to such transfers. The proposed changes caused a visceral reaction within much of the accounting, financial planning and legal industries as it started a clock on implementing those strategies before a potential change.

President-elect Donald Trump has promised to introduce a tax plan that includes estate tax repeal as a priority in his first 100 days, however several questions must be addressed before repeal becomes reality.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”) today announced that they have acquired Byrne International LLC, effective January 2017. Christopher J. Byrne joins UHY as a Managing Director; and he has brought a team of four staff members with him. This merger, based out of UHY Advisors’ New York office, will greatly enhance the company’s ability to offer dynamic solutions and domain expertise for UHY’s international clientele.

The IRS has opened the doors to begin receiving 2016 tax returns, but some early filers may find they are left waiting weeks before their refund arrives. That's thanks to a new law intended to reduce cases of tax fraud.

The amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) attracted by the US is outperforming the global average by over thirteen times, according to a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.
According to UHY, inflows of FDI into the US were $379.4 billion last year, accounting for 2.1% of total GDP. This compares to the average world figure of $29.3 billion, or 2.2% of total GDP.

The prudent businessperson is always cautious when he or she is offered a great bargain on real estate, equipment, a business interest, or some other property that just might be too good to be true. Even in connection with ordinary business transactions but especially when considering taking over a property or business that in a bargain because of some legal wrinkle, you should consider whether there might be some tax liability attached to the bargain that could come back to haunt you down the road.

The Better Business Bureau has learned that scammers are now targeting small business owners with phishing emails using QuickBooks software as bait. Emails are being sent with the subject line "QuickBooks Support: Change Request". The message is "confirming" that the business name was changed with Intuit, QuickBooks' manufacturer, even though no such request was made.

President Trump's first couple weeks in office have been quite eventful, moving to repeal the Affordable Care Act, giving the green light for the Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipelines to be constructed, immigration restrictions and of course "The Wall". Trump has proposed to use "comprehensive tax reform" as a means to tax imports from the countries that the US has trade deficits with; like Mexico.

The IRS has proposed several rule changes that could bode well for taxpayers. The biggest proposed change would affect the earned income tax credit that has been in effect since 1994.With the proposed changes both taxpayers are eligible to claim the earned income tax credit; one can claim the full portion of the credit and the other can claim the reduced credit for childless taxpayers if certain requirements are met.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) released Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2017-01 in order to have more consistent application of accounting principles relating to business and asset acquisitions and disposals. The ASU aims to achieve this by clarifying the definition of a business with the objective of adding guidance to assist entities with evaluating whether transactions should be accounted for as acquisitions (or disposals) of assets or businesses.

Are enterprises more or less secure than 5 years ago? That’s the big question of the moment, especially with ongoing revelations about state-sponsored hacking, as well as an unending stream of reports about customer and employee data being compromised by even the most seemingly security-conscious organizations. Awareness of data security is running at a fever pitch at the highest levels of government and business organizations. There have been plenty of technology advances, and awareness has grown. Still, the wave of breaches and threats never seems to abate, and likely never will.

The IRS has rules that limit the deductibility of expenses and losses from a hobby or activity not engaged in for profit. If the IRS determines that an activity is not profit-driven, deductions from the activity are limited to the amount of income the activity generates. Losses from such activities cannot be used to offset other income, such as salary or investments.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”) announces their return to the Texas market and the opening of a new office. Consultants from Berkeley Research Group, led by Norman Comstock (a former UHY managing director) and David Phillips, have joined UHY to focus on providing cybersecurity and related technology advisory services to a national client base.

The New York State Department of Financial Services (“NYDFS”) recently announced the country’s first state regulations requiring the establishment and maintenance of cybersecurity programs for financial institutions - “Cybersecurity Requirements for Financial Services Companies.”

Today, the Federal Open Market Committee raised the Federal Reserve's federal funds rate by a quarter percentage point to a target range of 0.75% to 1.00%. This move was highly anticipated - one might even say a forgone conclusion - by the time it was announced. In light of inflation estimates reaching 2% and the February "jobs report" showing unemployment down to 4.7%, nearly every Fed watcher expected the upward movement today.

Looming large in the sphere of big accounting changes, new requirements to bring leases on to corporate balance sheets are starting to win pockets of attention. That attention is mixed, however, as companies enter the home stretch in adopting even bigger change to the way they recognize revenue in financial statements.

UHY LLP, one of the leading tax and business consulting firms in the Capital Region, today presented The Foundation for Ellis Medicine with a $2,500 grant to support the new Bringing Baby Home initiative at Ellis Medicine’s Bellevue Woman’s Center in Schenectady, N.Y.

Interns and staff accountants from UHY LLP’s Michigan practice stepped away from the office for a day during busy season and visited students from Burton International Academy in Detroit to learn about the art history of Mexico and tap into the students’ creative minds

UHY LLP and Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC dusted off the equipment, sharpened the skates and pulled out the old sweaters to take on Talmer Bank & Trust in the fourth annual charity hockey game at Oak Park Ice Arena.

Although Detroit already had a "jock tax" in place, it was not officially codified until early March. Detroit's jock tax is the first tax in the US to count travel days that don't necessarily include service inside the city. The new ordinance provides guidance to teams on how to allocate income accordingly.

All taxpayers should be aware that the IRS has implemented a new program that allows private debt collection agencies to call to collect past-due taxes. This may be confusing to many taxpayers since there have been a bevy of warnings circulating that warn of scams where a fraudster calls identifying themselves as a representative of the IRS.

The US is powering ahead of the world average in terms of capital investment in its economy’s business resources and public infrastructure, strengthening its future growth prospects, reveals a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

UHY Advisors shared how to implement effective change management through a culture of continuous improvement on its Atlanta Business Radio show April 21st at 10 a.m. EST. UHY’s Managing Directors Frank Fenello and Cindy Hannafey hosted as part of UHY’s monthly radio program series, Cause & Affect. Listeners learned how to successfully manage through change and sustain the resulting increased efficiencies and productivity.

US not-for-profits encompass a wide variety of industries that include health care, higher education, credit unions and public authorities, to name a few. Andrea Murad speaks to the individuals who ensure they maintain their nonprofit status.

In 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued Accounting Standards Update Simplifying the Measurement of Inventory (ASU 2015-11). This standard simplifies the subsequent measurement of inventory by replacing the "lower of cost or market" test with a new "lower of cost and net realizable value test." However, entities that use the LIFO or retail inventory methods, will continue applying their current impairment models.

National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson, in a recent report to Congress, urged the IRS to change its culture from one that is enforcement-oriented to one that is service-oriented. Such a change, Olson provided, would create an environment that encourages taxpayer trust and confidence. In the report, Olson also highlighted key areas for tax simplification and the top-10 most litigated tax issues.

First-time business sellers often must negotiate an M&A deal with far more experienced buyers. If your buyer already has several acquisitions under its belt, you could be at a competitive disadvantage. Experienced M&A advisors, who can fight on your behalf for the best price and deal terms, are essential to overcoming this strategic disadvantage.

The prudent businessperson is always cautious when he or she is offered a great bargain on real estate, equipment, a business interest, or some other property that just might be too good to be true. Even in connection with ordinary business transactions but especially when considering taking over a property or business that in a bargain because of some legal wrinkle, you should consider whether there might be some tax liability attached to the bargain that could come back to haunt you down the road.

The 2017 tax filing season launched on January 23. The IRS predicted a few speedbumps for taxpayers, especially for taxpayers who file early in anticipation of early refunds. The agency expects to receive more than 150 million individual income tax returns. The vast majority of individual income tax returns will be filed electronically and the IRS has extra safeguards in place to protect taxpayers from cybercrime.

Have you set a goal for your company this year?
If you’re like most business owners, you’re striving for an increase in your annual sales. It’s natural to want your company to be bigger because that’s what everyone around us seems to celebrate.

The change in administrations in Washington has generated a new focus on tax reform. The White House and lawmakers from both parties have discussed tax cuts, infrastructure spending, and more to encourage economic growth. However, the details of their plans have yet to be revealed. Tax reform legislation may be unveiled in February.

When auditors of not-for-profit organizations can provide the optimal level of assurance on an organization's financial statements, the report will say “the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the organization and the changes in its net assets and cash flows.” The question naturally arises, then: what is meant by “material”? Auditing standards define materiality as something that could influence “the judgment of a reasonable person relying on the information.” Thus, materiality is not only quantitative but qualitative as well.

There are several reasons for which a public charity can loss its tax-exempt status – and the most common is also the most easily avoidable. Each year thousands of nonprofits loss their tax-exempt status for failure to fulfill annual filing requirements. More specifically, they fail to file the Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax.

Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed the American Health Care Act (AHCA) in a narrow vote of 217 to 213 after the bill had been amended from its previous version proposed a few weeks earlier. The AHCA is new proposed legislation that will repeal and replace parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) which is currently the law of the land. While this is only the first step of the new legislation, here are a few of the highlights of the bill.

Yesterday, the White House released President Donald Trump's tax reform plan to the public. The proposal aims to drastically cut corporate taxes as well as provide tax relief for individuals, with middle-income families as the primary target. The goal of the tax reform is to create economic growth, and American jobs, and to lower the business tax rate to one of the lowest in the world. The proposed tax reform plan is being touted as one of the biggest individual and business tax cuts in American history.

Now that the initial April 18 personal income tax deadline has passed, the Internal Revenue Service has released six major changes to collection policies. Taxpayers that have outstanding balances due to the IRS can expect to be impacted in more ways than the traditional paper notices that arrive by mail every few weeks. The changes are designed to be motivation for delinquent taxpayers to settle all tax debts sooner rather than later.

President Donald Trump imposed a tariff on importing Canadian softwood lumber. Tariffs between 3 and 24.1 percent are to be imposed on five Canadian lumber companies: West Fraser Mills, Tolko Marketing and Sales, J.D. Irving, Canfor Corporation and Resolute FP Canada.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2017-08 to update the amortization period of certain callable debt securities held at a premium, requiring the premium to be amortized to the earliest call date. Entities generally amortize the premiums and discounts on callable debt securities over the contractual life of the instrument under current GAAP.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued a new Accounting Standard Update in early 2017 (ASU 2017-05) to clarify guidance on Accounting Standard Codification (ASC) Subtopic 610-20 - Gains and Losses from the Derecognition of Nonfinancial Assets. All public entities should apply the amendments in ASU 2017-05 to annual reporting periods beginning after Dec. 15, 2017.

If you’ve ever obtained a business valuation for a client, you know that the final value usually includes several components — including tangible and intangible assets. The term “intangible assets” often triggers thoughts.

Both sellers and buyers must handle a torrent of details during an M&A deal closing, such as getting permissions from a host of parties and transferring various operating permits. If you’re in a transaction’s early stages, you might not realize how much paperwork and communication will be necessary to achieve an ownership transfer. The earlier that the parties prepare for this time-consuming task, the better.

Under-performing companies present special valuation challenges. Financial distress adds an element of risk, which lowers value. So, compared with healthy companies, distressed businesses tend to have higher discount rates (under the income approach) and receive downward adjustments to pricing multiples (under the market approach), and sometimes don’t have past or projected earnings that contribute to the company’s value (under the cost approach). Or valuators might select guideline companies with similar financial performance or a proximate transaction date to avoid using deals that occurred during better economic times.

There are times when putting a business up for sale is the best — or only — next step. All owners need to recognize the signs that they’ve reached this expiration date so they can properly prepare for a sale and start building the case for a reasonable sale price.

Brad Baer, a Managing Director in the Management & Technology Consulting group at UHY Advisors, recently had the pleasure of leading UHY’s Cause & Affect radio program on the topic of continuous accounting. Along with my colleagues Andrew Borsuk from the UHY team, Matt Cagwin with First Data, and Tammie Coley with Cox Communications, we addressed transforming a company’s accounting department to become more automated, efficient and productive, ultimately making a real impact on company performance.

David Barton, a Managing Director at UHY Advisors, recently hosted UHY’s monthly Cause & Affect radio show on Atlanta Business Radio, along with my colleague Dave King, where we discussed how businesses can better manage cybersecurity.

On UHY’s latest Cause & Affect radio show on Atlanta Business Radio, David Barton, Managing Director at UHY Advisors, covered the topic of protecting company data. Vice President of IST Management Services Daniel Blechinger joined me to address how to navigate IT security frameworks and reporting to best protect your company’s information.

While hosting UHY’s monthly Cause & Affect radio show on Atlanta Business Radio recently, Amy Gallagher, Principal with UHY’s Resource Solutions Group, addressed some of the challenges businesses face when managing through periods of company growth. These challenges impact organizations regardless of industry, size and stage of maturity. No matter the cause, getting the right people, processes and technology in order is critical.

We are excited to announce that UHY Advisors has launched a monthly radio program, Cause & Affect, broadcasting via Business Radio X out of Atlanta. Each month, the show will highlight difficult challenges companies are facing in running and growing their business, and offer insights from UHY executives and guests from Atlanta’s most innovative businesses on how to overcome them.

WannaCrypt is a serious ransomware attack that has caused major interruptions to individuals, businesses and governments around the world. However, what gives this ransomware teeth is that it took advantage of a vulnerability in Microsoft operating systems that has been public knowledge. Anyone who was using an operating system newer than Windows XP, could have simply patched their workstation and their only risk was to click on a link they shouldn't have. The problem is many people and organizations haven't patched their computers or are still running Windows XP.

In recent months, police in Michigan have reported an increasing number of incidents of this fraud. In most cases, the fraud is only discovered if your employee attempts to file an unemployment claim and learns that a claim has already been filed; an employee receives a statement of benefits from the insurance company, or an employee's federal or state income taxes are intercepted.

Do you know someone that lives in Detroit but uses a permanent address outside the city? Maybe someone you know has a business in Detroit but uses a non-Detroit mailing address. Or perhaps you know someone who owns rental property in Midtown or downtown Detroit.
The city of Detroit has 11 auditors and three attorneys searching for Detroit residents and businesses that are not paying Detroit taxes and is targeting the now popular Midtown and downtown areas.

According to a recent public service announcement, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center ("IC3") states the business email compromise (BEC)/email account compromise (EAC) scam continues to grow. BEC is a sophisticated scam targeting businesses working with foreign suppliers and/or businesses that regularly perform wire transfer payments. The EAC is a component of BEC targeting individuals that execute wire transfer payments. The scam is carried out when a subject compromises legitimate business email accounts through social engineering (ex. phishing) or computer intrusion techniques to make unauthorized transfers of funds.

Many years ago you started to put some money aside to provide a comfortable retirement. Maybe it was a pension plan, possibly a 401K plan or even an IRA. Do you have more than one of these accounts because of job or investment advisor changes? Have you gotten married since you opened your account? Have you had children, got divorced, had grandchildren or had a death in the family? Chances are one or more of these life events will apply to you. When you set your retirement account up you made a beneficiary election. Do you remember who you selected...or have a copy of the election you made? Your retirement account is just that, for retirement. However, in most cases these funds are never totally exhausted before the account owner dies so your beneficiary election is vital to proper retirement planning. Your beneficiary election will determine who inherits your retirement account, but more importantly, how and when it will be taxed to them.

The IRS has issued a new taxpayer friendly procedure for certain estate tax returns that missed the filing deadline to obtain the portability election. Rev. Proc. 2017-34 provides a simplified method to receive an extension of time to make a portability election if you didn't file the 706 return on time. A portability election allows a deceased taxpayer to transfer any unused gift/estate tax exemption amount (currently the maximum is $5,490,000 in 2017) to their surviving spouse.

On May 4, the House of Representatives passed the American Health Care Act (AHCA) by a vote of 217 to 213. However, instead of promptly sending the bill to the Senate, the House instead waited for the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) analysis. The CBO, along with the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) issued its report on May 24.

Consumers in the US benefit from customs duty rates of nearly a third lower than the global average, saving them significant amounts of money, according to a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

The IRS, with an affirmative ruling from the Tax Court, has disallowed an S corporation's deduction of the unpaid portion of the payroll expenses for employees who participated in the S corporation's employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).

A United States citizen dies in the United Kingdom having spent a significant number of years living and working in the UK. To which country or countries will estate taxes be payable?
Fortunately, in the case of the US and the UK there is an estate tax treaty that has mechanisms to prevent double taxation.
According to UHY partner Christopher Byrne, the US / UK Estate Tax Treaty uses domicile primarily as the bases of estate taxation. The exception is real property and business property of a permanent establishment. Those are taxed based on location.

UHY LLP (“UHY”), one of the nation’s fastest growing accounting firms, just finished up it’s summer recruiting and leadership program, UHY Connect, where over one hundred accounting students were given a glimpse inside UHY offices across the country. The program allows potential recruits to get a feel for the firm’s culture and working environment, and make connections with partners, accounting staff and others prior to graduating and choosing their career path.

In an ever-globalizing world, U.S. tax payers are looking abroad for their insurance needs. According to UHY partner Christopher Byrne, while taxpayers may find certain benefits from policies issued by a foreign insurer that they might not find domestically, many find themselves with a rude awakening when they are hit with a surprise surcharge from the IRS. Pursuant to Internal Revenue Code § 4371(2), a one percent excise tax is charged on the premium paid on a policy for life, sickness, or accident insurance or an annuity contract.

The Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), otherwise known as Obamacare, has been in the headlines lately as Republicans work to replace the ACA or otherwise repeal it entirely. In recent days, efforts to replace the law have fallen through as certain Republican senators have pledged to oppose it. The debates surrounding the ACA have also brought the Net Investment Income Tax (“NIIT”) into the spotlight.

The change of administration in Washington, as well as state and local initiatives, makes this a hard time for nonprofit boards and management to predict and determine the best strategies for sustainability -meeting the needs of its stakeholders and financial viability becomes ever more challenging.

Consider the fact that potential donors often have only the organization’s audited financials and Form 990 to evaluate the organization’s financial strength and how efficiently it would use a potential donation. Evaluating a nonprofit organization’s financial statements is different than evaluating statements of for-profit entities because having large amounts of revenue over expenses is not the main goal of the nonprofit organization and many organizations are budgeted to have zero excess revenues over expenses.

UHY LLP, the fifth largest accounting firm in Southeast Michigan, will host their annual company picnic at Jimmy John’s Field on July 22 during Rockin’ 4 Hunger’s ‘Strike Out Hunger’ night. Employees and their guests are encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item. Proceeds from the game will benefit Macomb Feeding the Need and UHY will also make a monetary donation.

UHY Advisors shared its expertise on building and maintaining a strong work environment for a multi-generational workforce on its most recent Atlanta Business Radio show. Listeners learned how to foster a healthy workplace culture from both the employer and employee perspective.

As part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), one of the many excise taxes imposed by this act is again quickly approaching. The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee is an excise tax imposed on health insurance issuers and plan sponsors of self-insured health plans effective for plan years ending on or after Oct. 1, 2012.

In response to the threat of the Illinois credit rating being downgraded to “junk bond” status, the Illinois General Assembly has passed the first state budget since 2015, and a multibillion-dollar income tax hike to support it. The resulting Illinois Income Tax Act (IITA) produces a number of tax changes that impact individuals, corporations, and most other filing entities.

According to UHY partner Christopher Byrne, Internal Revenue Code § 121 provides taxpayers with an exclusion from gross income of up to $250,000 of gain on the sale of a taxpayer’s principal residence. A married couple filing a joint return may exclude up to $500,000. In order to qualify for the exclusion, the residence must have been the taxpayer’s principal residence for an aggregate of 2 years or more during the 5 year period leading up to the sale. The determination of a principal residence is a question of facts and circumstances.

If you are a recent widow or widower who thought you missed out on the opportunity for your spouse's estate to make a portability election or perhaps did not think you had a need when your loved one died, the IRS has given you another chance. Earlier this month, the IRS provided a way for the estate of a decedent who was married at the time of death to make a late portability election through recently issued Revenue Procedure 2017-34.

Inheriting an IRA means different things to different people. Everyone shares in the grief of a departed loved one, but the options available to those beneficiaries are very different. Spousal beneficiaries have options to treat the IRA as their own or can keep the account in the original owner's name. Non-spousal beneficiaries must keep the account in the original owner's name and are subject to different distribution rules that depend on the age of the original owner.

Manufacturing companies that have equipment subject to the Michigan Essential Services Assessment (ESA) are required to certify through the Michigan Treasury Online website that the essential services tax liability is correct before the ESA can be paid.

Adapting to change today is inevitable as economic stasis is not an option. The concept of resilience, the capability to nimbly adapt to and or drive change, and recover from difficulty, has emerged as a critical characteristic of complex systems in business enterprises. Change not only creates threats to business continuity it also creates opportunities for business value creation. When change occurs so too must business process innovations.

The word disruption historically has negative connotations associated with it. The specific definition stated by the Cambridge English Dictionary is to prevent something, especially a system, process or event, from continuing as usual or as expected. People are creatures of habit and would really prefer for things to stay the same. Disruption makes us uncomfortable. In layman’s terms, a disruption is a break from the status quo.

According to UHY partner Christopher Byrne, the Internal Revenue Code provides that, in general, income from the sale of personal property is sourced based on the residence of the seller. Therefore a sale of personal property by a US resident is sourced in the United States, while such property sold by a non-resident of the United States is treated, for US tax purposes as sold outside the US.

A major change is on the horizon to how partnerships and LLCs are taxed and the relationships they have with their current and former partners. When the new audit regulations of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (the BBA rules) take effect Jan. 1, 2018, it will be the first time ever in the history of audits that a tax could apply to a partnership or LLC.

According to digital security provider Gemalto, despite the increasing number of data breaches and nearly 1.4 billion data records being lost or stolen in 2016, the vast majority of IT professionals still believe perimeter security is effective at keeping unauthorized users out of their networks. However, companies are underinvesting in technology that adequately protects their business, according to the findings of the fourth annual Data Security Confidence Index Survey.

Josh Kirkbride, partner of UHY LLP certified public accountants, and longtime supporter of the P.C.U.P.S (Prostate Cancer Understanding Prevention Screenings) Foundation has been voted in as its newest board member.

Hackers are increasingly targeting companies at an alarming rate. It only takes one click to bring the services of a company to a halt. Most believe that having the best firewalls in place will mitigate this risk, but in reality their most vulnerable firewall is the human firewall. Security training and awareness most be continuous to keep up with ever-evolving threats. Especially since hackers are always one day ahead of the firewalls that protect you.

UHY LLP, certified public accountants, with 380 employees in Oakland and Macomb counties, is opening its fourth Michigan office in Ann Arbor. UHY’s first Washtenaw County office will be open for business in a newly renovated suite on East Eisenhower Parkway just minutes away from University of Michigan’s main campus and the Big House.

The Internal Revenue Service has recently announced the launch of country-by-country (CbC) reporting pages on irs.gov which will provide background information on CbC reporting, frequently asked questions and other helpful resources, including a list of jurisdictions that have concluded competent authority arrangements with the United States.

The IRS announced that affected taxpayers in Michigan who were impacted by storms that occurred beginning June 22 may qualify for tax relief. Individuals who reside or have a business in Bay, Gladwin, Isabella, and Midland counties, and the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe within Isabella County should determine if they meet the guidelines for the relief.

Recent court decisions and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Chief Counsel Memorandum (CCM) reinforce the need to keep accurate records and adequately disclose all charitable contributions as well as gifts made to others.

The effective date of the new lease accounting standard, Accounting Standard Update (ASU) No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), is quickly approaching with an effective date for fiscal years ending after Dec. 15, 2018 and Dec. 15, 2019 for public and non-public companies respectively. ASU 2016-02 is the first major change in lease accounting in over 30 years following the issuance of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 13 in 1976 . Working towards convergence with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), and greater transparency are a couple of the major driving forces behind the new standard.

A new ransomware attack is underway world-wide, already targeting 20 million plus victims in the first few days. Here are the key facts to date: attack comes via email from Herbalife confirming an order or from a more generic "copier@______" address, email includes an attachment which when opened launches the ransomware, here may be as many as 8,000 variants of the email messages, no victims that have paid a ransom have received a decryption tool thus far

Bank lending to the private sector in the US is just 14 percent higher in the last year than it was before the financial crisis – compared to a global average of 24 percent – hampering the return to economic growth, reveals a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

The "Big Six" issued their "Unified Framework for Fixing Our Broken Tax Code". The framework is intended to give a template for the tax-writing committees to develop tax reform. The framework is also consistent with President Trump's four principles for tax reform.

Executing new ideas in a conventional way is one of the key missteps we have seen people repeat when they are operationalizing a resilient organization. Convention tells you that to change an organization’s performance you need to change the organization by bringing together functions, capabilities and supporting technologies.

With ever-growing globalization, wealthy families have taken the opportunity to live and maintain homes all across the world, including in the United States. One of the potential challenges facing such individuals is planning their estates in an effort to maximize tax efficiencies and to retain their hard-earned wealth.

A Roth IRA can be an attractive investment over a traditional IRA in a couple of different ways: it gives taxpayers the opportunity to avoid tax on their IRA distributions and a Roth is not subject to required minimum distribution rules. When converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, a taxable event occurs and taxpayers must pay tax on their conversion amount as if it were ordinary income.

The Michigan Department of Treasury will be implementing a new tax return system for motor fuel taxes over the next several months. The goal is to establish a modern system to make filing returns easier and more efficient. In the meantime companies should continue to file returns using the current method until the new system is complete.

Prior to July 1, 2017 dental labs had been considered providers of a non-taxable service on the sale of prosthetic devices they manufactured and were not required to charge sales tax on the sales of the prosthetic devices (Michigan Letter Ruling 1985-20). Furthermore, the labs did not qualify for the "industrial processing exemption" and paid sales tax on the purchase of the materials to create the prosthetic device.

The UHY global real estate guide has been developed to provide property investors with information on rules and regulations from over 70 countries featured in the guide, covering areas such as real estate regulations (e.g. deduction of expenses and interests), tax rates (e.g. VAT, wealth tax and inheritance tax) and also touches on some tax planning techniques.

On April 26, 2017, the White House distributed a memo describing President Trump’s goals for tax reform. The memo lists the following four points under business reform: reduced business tax rate, territorial tax system, one-time tax on repatriation of trillions of dollars held overseas, and elimination of tax breaks for special interests.

According to a new Standard & Poor’s report, there are two key indicators that will tell you what kind of shape the manufacturing industry is in. The first is the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Manager’s Index and the second is the Federal Reserve’s Capacity Utilization Index for motor vehicles and parts.

Republicans have unveiled their proposed tax plan today. The proposal includes a path to repeal the US federal estate tax. This should be of interest to wealthy individuals, including foreign nationals investing in the US through US corps, real estate, and/or other activities.

The House Ways and Means committee released the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This finally gives the American people insight into the tax reform that President Trump and the Republicans have been talking about since April. The Act is being touted as the first major tax reform since the Tax Reform Act of 1986. The Ways and Means committee is indicating that this will save the average American family $1,182 in taxes. In addition, due to simplification, an individual or family will be able to file their taxes on a form as simple as a postcard.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has announced that the maximum amount of wages subject to the 6.2 percent Social Security tax (old age, survivor and disability insurance) for 2018 will rise from $127,200 to $128,700. The increase of just over one percent is a lot less than the seven percent jump from 2016 to 2017.

Accrued bonuses can be deducted for tax purposes if certain criteria are met: must be paid within two and a half months after year end, the bonus is determinable within reasonable accuracy, economic performance has occurred within the tax year, and all events have occurred that "establish the fact" of the liability before year-end

The IRS has issued a directive to tax examiners in the Large Business and International Division (LB & I) that taxpayers may use ASC 730 Financial Statements that follow US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) as evidence of their qualified research expenses (QRE's) to reduce the burden of independent determination on both taxpayer and examiner.

Unforeseen events are just that...unexpected. You started out your career on the right path and began the process of saving for your retirement. Then life throws you a curveball and you realize you will need to access those funds much sooner than you expected. If you have not reached the age of 59½, you will be subject to taxation on withdrawal of those funds and get hit with a 10 percent early distribution penalty.

On October 12, The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that there is a new cyber scam to be aware of. The scam is an intricate plan that has affected both tax pros and taxpayers alike, and is being used by cybercriminals to obtain access to annuity and life insurance accounts.

Last month, the Internal Revenue Service released Notice 2017-64, which provides the annual cost-of-living adjustments and contribution limits on 401(k) plans, pension plans, and other retirement accounts for 2018.

In a recent announcement, the IRS indicated that it will begin sending notices to employers that have failed to comply with the employer responsibilities related to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). For the 2015 calendar year, the IRS plans to issue Letter 226J informing applicable large employers of their potential liability for an employer shared responsibility payment (ESRP), if any, in late 2017.

UHY LLP (“UHY”), today announced its $25,000 sponsorship of the Double H Ranch. Based in Lake Luzerne, New York, The Double H Ranch is a philanthropic program with global reach that serves over 60,000 children dealing with life-threatening illnesses. The goal of this sponsorship program is to create more awareness, donations and volunteer support for the ongoing “Mission Awareness” campaign for the Double H Ranch, which is just one hour north of UHY’s Albany, NY office.

Growth in the number of businesses in the US has been outpaced by many other economies around the world in the last year, reveals a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

Often times what attracts a person to a nonprofit board is a shared interest or passion for the mission of an organization. Of course this is important, as a board position requires an ample amount of volunteer time. However, it is important for board members to not lose sight that they are ultimately tasked with the governance of the organization. A point that should not be taken lightly. The importance of this responsibility is demonstrated by the IRS annual Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990) which dedicates an entire section to governance, management and disclosure, and includes a list of all board members.

There are many intricacies involved in administering retirement plans. The implementation of sound internal controls is necessitated by the many rules retirement plans are subject to, and by the fact that some of those rules tend to change quite frequently. Because of the complexity of those rules, mistakes (generally human errors) can occur in almost all retirement plans, even plans run by experts.

The House and Senate conferees released their conference report after finalizing negotiations on the differences between the House and Senate versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The conference report now goes to the House and Senate, which are expected to pass the legislation and present to President Trump for signature this week.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act significantly limits the amount an individual can deduct as an itemized deduction for state and local taxes. The maximum amount a taxpayer may claim as an itemized deduction is $10,000 ($5,000 for a married taxpayer filing a separate return) for the aggregate of (i) state and local property taxes and (ii) state and local income taxes (or sales taxes in lieu of income taxes).

UHY Advisors and UHY LLP are proud to welcome members from UHY International, one of the largest global accounting and consultancy networks in the world, to the Motor City for the 2018 International Members Meeting to be held in downtown Detroit. The 2018 meeting will be the largest gathering of UHY International partners ever with representatives from over 90 countries coming together to conduct business, gain education and experience the great comeback in Detroit.

With the impending decrease of the corporate tax rate to 21 percent, is it time to change your entity structure to a C corporation? There is no quick answer to this question. Each taxpayer is in a unique situation that would have to be evaluated in order to make the determination of which taxing structure is proper for that taxpayer.

In response to the federal tax bill signed into law on Dec. 22, 2017, New York state governor, Andrew M. Cuomo, signed an emergency executive order allowing individuals the ability to prepay next year's New York property taxes. The order is intended to protect taxpayers from the impact of the GOP tax bill, which caps the deductibility of state and local taxes at $10,000. By allowing individuals to pay a portion or all of their 2018 property taxes in 2017, the executive order aims to provide individuals with options as a result of the tax bill's negative financial impact.

Beginning in 2018 in Michigan, all companies with no unclaimed property will be required to file a zero or negative report. But, what is unclaimed property? Unclaimed property is any asset, tangible or intangible, belonging to a third party that remains unclaimed for a specified period of time by its rightful owner.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which is expected to be signed into law this week offers some generous write offs for the purchase of qualified property. For qualified purchases placed in service after Sept. 27, 2017; 100% of the purchase price can be expensed. This total expense provision will continue until the year 2023 when it will be phased down as follows: 2023- 80%; 2024- 60%; 2025-40%; 2026- 20% and 2027 -0%. The new law would follow the phase down of bonus depreciation of 50% for assets purchased prior to Sept. 27, 2017 but placed in service after that date.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by the House and Senate this week widens current tax brackets and almost doubles the standard deduction, but also limits or repeals some itemized deductions. Beginning in 2018, the Act increases the standard deduction to $24,000 for married-filing joint filers, $18,000 for head-of-household filers and $12,000 for all others.

Under the recently signed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Congress added Section 199A, a new provision of the Internal Revenue Code that provides for a potential 20 percent deduction for an individual related to income from pass-through entities and other non-corporate tax structures. The deduction begins in 2018 and is scheduled to end after 2025.

Virtual currency, or cryptocurrency, is a digital representation of value that can be exchanged for goods and services or held for investment. These currencies include Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum and many others. For Bitcoin, if a taxpayer "mines" the virtual currency, it needs to be included in gross income at the fair market value upon receipt or discovery of the currency. The character of the income depends on the intended purpose of the currency.

Effective Jan. 1, 2018 the minimum wage rate in Michigan has increased to $9.25. According to the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, the increase is the final scheduled increase provided by the Workforce Opportunity Wage Act of 2014.

The Ohio Department of Taxation is offering a limited time tax amnesty program. This will run from Jan. 1 - Feb. 15, 2018 and will allow relief from penalties and savings of 50 percent on interest charges. If you had unreported or underreported taxes that were due as of May 1, 2017, this is an opportunity to become current with tax liabilities in Ohio. Eligible individuals and businesses are those that have not been contacted by the Department.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), a leading tax and business consulting firm, today announced it has expanded the size and capabilities of its accounting automation team and service offerings with the acquisition of the practice of Bright Point Consulting, a Raleigh, NC-based finance and accounting software implementation firm.

Cybercriminals typically increase their activity in the first part of the year through phone scams and email phishing schemes. These scammers try to obtain personal information using different tricks and tactics so they can file income tax returns and claim refunds on behalf of unsuspecting taxpayers. Some scammers may also allege a taxpayer owes taxes and aggressively demand payment for a quick payout.

UHY Advisors NY, Inc. today announced that Warren Zafrin has joined the firm as a partner and leader of the Risk Advisory Services Group. Along with Zafrin the firm has hired Lauren Jarvis as a principal in the group. They are both based in New York.

UHY was recognized as Advocate of the Year for ongoing support of the development and sustainability of minority businesses and creating an unwavering sense of confidence in its clients through volatile market conditions.

UHY Advisors, Inc. (“UHY Advisors”), one of the nation’s leading professional services firms, announced the appointment of eight new managing directors: Thomas Bowen, Daniel Felstow, Amy Gallagher, Jeffrey Hare, Michael Kirby, Corey Massella, Bill Rausch and Warren Zafrin. Bowen and Felstow are both based in Michigan.

Retirement means different things to different people. Some people look at this as the last chapter in a long life. They wish to slow down, travel a bit and spend more time with their families. Other people look at retirement as an opportunity to reshuffle the cards and pursue new dreams or passions that their earlier career did not provide.

On Jan. 4, 2018, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued statements warning of the risks of cryptocurrencies. Their statement highlighted important issues and concerns related to cryptocurrencies, initial coin offerings (ICO) and other cryptocurrency related investment products.

Signed into law in November of 2015, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 made sweeping changes to the way partnerships are audited. These changes apply for tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2017 and are intended to simplify the audit process for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

US individual shareholders of controlled foreign corporations (CFCs) are currently grappling with the one-time US transition tax on post-1986 deferred foreign income accumulated by their CFCs and the impact of new anti-deferral income inclusion rules referred to as the global intangible low-taxed income (GILTI) provisions, along with other generational changes to the US international tax rules, as the United States transitions from a worldwide tax system to a quasi-territorial tax system.

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, passed by Congress and signed by President Trump on Feb. 9, 2018, retroactively extends over 30 tax provisions that had expired at the end of 2016. This one year extension applies to the extended provisions and is effective for 2017 only. Many of the extended provisions are related to energy credits which are especially important for businesses and individual taxpayers.

Not only are many manufacturers wondering how the tax law changes will fuel the economy, but how will the key provisions impact my business. Well, usually most answer(s) provided by your advisor take on a typical response like “it depends,” and in some regards that is the case here. However, before we get into specific benefits under the new law, let’s step back and look at what this means from a macro level.

Based in St. Louis, Missouri, US, Sunnen Products Company (referred to as Sunnen) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of bore sizing and finishing equipment, engine rebuilding equipment, and tooling and abrasives. Its honing products are used in the sizing and finishing of cylindrical bores for internal combustion engines; in mechanical gears; in hydraulic valve bodies, blocks, and cylinders; and in petroleum extraction tubes, among others.
The company’s prime markets include automotive and transportation, construction, mining, aerospace and energy. Customers range all the way from small, owner-operated machine shops to large, publicly-traded original equipment manufacturers.

UHY Advisors, a leading global financial, tax and business consulting firm, will showcase its Shared Services and Digital Transformation capabilities at the 22nd Annual North American Shared Services & Outsourcing Week (SSOW) conference in Orlando, March 19-22, 2018. The firm will offer a focused workshop on Digital Transformation.

Beginning in 2018, regardless of when incurred, home equity loan interest is generally not deductible under the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The IRS has issued clarifying guidance that taxpayers, in certain situations, can continue to deduct interest on a home equity loan, a home equity line of credit or a second mortgage, as mortgage interest. All the interest paid on these types of loans is deductible if they are secured by a qualified residence and the total loans do not exceed the home's cost. Also, the total amount of these loans cannot exceed $750,000, reduced to $375,000 for taxpayers filing as married filing separate.

Among the data exposed in the Equifax breach of 2017 were Social Security numbers, which thieves can use to file a fraudulent tax return using taxpayer information obtained in the breach. Tax-related identity theft is one of the top tax scams on the IRS "Dirty Dozen" list and the breach will exacerbate that problem.

Twenty years! That's how long Roth IRAs have been around. In the year 2000 only about $77 billion was invested in these types of accounts but by 2017 it is estimated that there is almost $3 trillion in Roth IRAs. While these accounts have enjoyed explosive growth over two decades, many things are not fully understood about this tax-free retirement account.

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, passed by Congress and signed by President Trump on Feb. 9, 2018, retroactively extends over 30 tax provisions that had expired at the end of 2016. This one year extension applies to the extended provisions and is effective for 2017 only. Many of the extended provisions are related to energy credits which are especially important for businesses and individual taxpayers.

Under the newly enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the Federal estate, gift and generation-skipping tax (GST) lifetime exemption amounts have now increased to $11.2 million for individuals and $22.4 million for married couples. After increasing with inflation each year through 2025, the exemption amounts will revert back to the 2017 levels ($5,490,000 and $10,980,000) on Jan. 1, 2026. These substantial, yet temporary, increases in the exemption amounts present a unique opportunity for the implementation of various estate planning techniques that will allow the transfer of wealth to future generations.

The US has a tax burden of 22 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), a third (30 percent) lower than the G7 average (of 31.1 percent) shows research by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

The Internal Revenue Service announced on March 13 that it plans to end its Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP) on Sept. 28, 2018. The OVDP allowed taxpayers to avoid prosecution by voluntarily disclosing untaxed money held overseas and paying a set penalty. The OVDP, which has been available since 2009, has experienced a significant decline in taxpayer participation as awareness of offshore tax and reporting requirements has increased.

The Trump administration's trade policy made a bold statement with a spontaneous announcement to impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum. The president excluded Canada and Mexico, for now.

Prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), an individual had until the due date (including extensions) to reverse a Roth conversion if it did not make sense, which resulted in a date of October 15 of the year following the conversion. With passage of the TCJA, this recharacterization was eliminated.

SPI Research, a leading independent technology services research firm, named UHY Advisors’ Management & Technology Consulting practice as one of the 2018 Best-of-the-Best professional services organizations (PSO)! SPI’s extensive annual survey, the PS Maturity™ Benchmark, revealed UHY Advisors as a top performer that grew in both revenues and new jobs at more than twice the rate of average firms.

GASB issued a new standard on April 2 that requires state and local governments to present direct borrowings and direct placements of debt separately from other types of debt in their statement note disclosures. This new standard mandates the disclosure of additional debt-related information for all types of debt (including amounts of unused lines of credit and assets pledged as collateral for debt).

The newly enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Act") gave us what some people refer to as "mandatory repatriation" for previously untaxed foreign earnings of specified foreign corporations. In other words, Section 965 of the Internal Revenue Code now requires some taxpayers to pay tax on the untaxed foreign earnings of certain foreign corporations as if the earnings had been repatriated to the United States. This will take effect for the 2017 tax year for a majority of taxpayers.

In late 2017, the IRS issued Notice 2017-64 which provides the annual cost of living adjustments and contribution limits on 401(k) plans, pension plans and retirement accounts for 2018. Although the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made changes as to how cost of living adjustments are made, the previously released amounts remain unchanged.

As part of the sweeping changes facing nonprofit organizations implemented by FASB ASU 2016-14, the new accounting standards will also include requirements for additional disclosures of information to help users of nonprofit financial statements in assessing the liquidity of a nonprofit organization.

Every organization is in search of new revenues to support its mission. It might be tempting to see federal and state grants as a cost-free source of those revenues. Before you go chasing those new grants, you should be aware that they can come with a heavy administrative burden.

GuideStar® is a major player and one of the top charity watchdogs in the United States. Through their website at www.guidestar.org, they provide all tax exempt entities in the US with the ability to tell their story, share their mission and solicit program funding. This article highlights how big data from tax exempts and their tax filings of form 990 can be leveraged to provide valuable information to the Not-For-Profit (NFP) sector.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently warned of a new twist on an old phone scam. Criminals will use telephone numbers that mimic IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs) in order to trick taxpayers into paying non-existent tax bills.

For 2018, the standard deduction amounts will increase to simplify the deduction scheme. More taxpayers will find it beneficial to claim the standard deduction. Itemized deductions have been modified for the 2018 tax year following tax reform. Many of the itemized deductions have either disappeared or changed. Here is how the itemized deductions found on Schedule A have changed.

The Texas Tax Amnesty Program will begin Tuesday, May 1, 2018. The program offers a limited opportunity to certain delinquent taxpayers to bring their tax accounts into compliance with state tax law without incurring penalties and interest on any amounts due to the state. Amnesty applies to tax periods prior to Jan. 1, 2018, and only includes those amounts that have not been previously reported to the Comptroller's office.

A wave of hackers is anticipated in an industry dependent on sensitive data, intellectual property and trade secrets.
Maintaining a high level of cyber security is vital for the manufacturing industry. Generally defined as companies in the automotive, electronics, textile, and pharmaceutical space, these companies struggle to protect their anticipated wave of hackers as well as prevent or mitigate any damage, manufacturing companies must adopt a relevant framework, protect their data, educate employees and implement official cyber policies.

At the end of 2017, the largest corporate tax cuts in United States history were passed thus reducing the top corporate rate from 35 to 20 percent. This will allow repatriation of billions of dollars from overseas and many corporations to pass along bonuses and pay raises to their employees, boosting wage growth with average hourly earnings rising to 2.9 percent in January from a year earlier. Combining wage growth with an unemployment rate of 4.1 percent created the best outlook heading into 2018 for employees in almost a decade.

According to a new Standard & Poor’s report, there are two key indicators that will tell you what kind of shape the manufacturing industry is in. The first is the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Manager’s Index and the second is the Federal Reserve’s Capacity Utilization Index for motor vehicles and parts. A reading above 50 percent for the ISM index indicates that manufacturing is expanding in the US, and below 50 means that it is contracting.

Revenue Procedure 2018-27 provides relief for those with family coverage under high deductible health plans (HDHP) in regards to the annual deductible contributions limit for 2018 health savings accounts (HSA) under Internal Revenue Service Code section 223. The maximum coverage was initially issued as $6,900 on May 4, 2017. On March 2, 2018 the limit was reduced to $6,850 after tax reform changed the calculation for 2018 and future years.

Many middle market companies are unaware of the impending May 25 deadline to comply with the European Union's (EU) General Data Protection Regulation, better known as GDPR. The EU passed GDPR two years ago to provide enhanced privacy and data protections for its citizens, and beginning May 25, 2018, companies that process personal data of EU residents are subject to GDPR - including those based in the US. The ensuing fines for non-compliance with GDPR can be up to 20 million Euros ($24 Million USD), or 4% of the company's worldwide annual revenue.

UHY Advisors and UHY LLP (“UHY”) today announced that they have expanded their portfolio in the Northeast with the merger of the professional services firm Del Conte, Hyde, Annello & Schuch, P.C., located in Farmington, Connecticut. The firm started operating under the UHY banner effective May 1, 2018.

Finally, after two years of waiting, Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation takes effect starting today, May 25. Beyond just Europe, the regulation is expected to reshape how global organizations manage, share and protect their users’ personal data. Many organizations across the world have scrambled to be ready. But based on public statements from companies and client feedback, it is clear that many companies are still not in compliance.

As many companies work towards completing implementation of ASC Topic 606 (Revenue from Contracts with Customers), differing methods of accounting could be required for financial reporting vs. tax reporting. For annual reporting periods beginning after Dec. 15, 2018 (or beginning after Dec. 15, 2017 for publicly-traded entities), an entity must recognize revenue for promised goods and services to customers for financial reporting purposes in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods and services under a five-step model.

Due to changes under the 2017 tax act (Pub. L. No. 115-97), The Internal Revenue Service issued a Notice 2018-42 on May 25, 2018, to modify Notice 2018-03 regarding the use of standard mileage rates for business expenses, moving expenses, and fixed and variable rate (FAVR) payments.

2018 Essential Services Assessment (ESA) statements have been generated and are now available to taxpayers via the Michigan Treasury Online (MTO). Statements are not transmitted or mailed to taxpayers. Through MTO, taxpayers can view the statement, view correspondence from Treasury, make changes to the statement, certify the statement, and pay the ESA liability.

Michigan's new Motor Fuel tax processing system, "Michigan Automated Tax System" (MiMATS) will begin July 30, 2018. With the implementation of the new system, paper returns will no longer be accepted. The last date to file in the current system will be July 20, 2018.

Tourist spending represents just 1.1% of the US’ economy and is likely to fall further behind the global average of 1.2% and versus 2.1% for Europe, shows research by UHY, the international and consultancy network.

UHY LLP is pleased to announce that the AICPA’s National Peer Review Committee recently accepted our peer review report dated January 31, 2018. That report was prepared by our peer reviewer—Postlethwaite & Netterville—based on its review of UHY LLP in November 2017. CPA firms can receive a rating of pass, pass with deficiency(ies), or fail. UHY LLP received a peer review report rating of pass – the best possible outcome.

UHY Advisors Corporate Finance, LLC welcomes its newest director Jeremy Falendysz who will join the team in Detroit. Falendysz is an experienced investment banker with over 15 years in the industry representing a total deal value of over $60 billion. He worked on Wall Street for 10 years, including as vice president in Morgan Stanley’s investment banking division, in addition to positions with UBS and Deutsche Bank. Prior to joining UHY, he spent five years with a Birmingham-based boutique investment banking firm serving middle-market clients.

Tax reform provides an opportunity for simplification and tax relief for "small" businesses. Under the Act, a small business is defined as a taxpayer with average gross receipts during the previous three tax years of $25,000,000 or less. The $25,000,000 limit will be indexed for years after 2018. So what are qualifying taxpayers eligible for?

Commencing in 2018, as enacted under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, Congress provided that deductions for state and local taxes are to be capped at $10,000 per married couple. Many high tax states such as California, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have considered that this was inequitable to their residents, and have passed or are drafting legislation which would allow taxpayers to make payments to state or local municipal charitable organizations in exchange for credit against their real estate or state and local taxes.

There has been rapid growth in the number of people using virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, in the last few years. According to an article in The Tax Advisor, the IRS is beginning to watch this activity more closely. The underreporting of income from virtual currency transactions is potentially staggering. The IRS is beginning to aggressively pursue such transactions.

Before tax reform, there were not many limitations on a business's ability to deduct interest expense on their tax return. However, beginning in 2018, tax reform will significantly alter the ability to deduct business interest expense for a great many taxpayers.

Six months following the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2018, many questions still remain unanswered regarding the implementation of the new law. However, tax planning is a fluid process and the time is ripe to revisit many new provisions. In 2018, the corporate tax rate was lowered from 35 percent to 21 percent which is significantly lower than the top individual tax rate of 37 percent.

UHY Global, a bi-annial magazine, gives insight into international business topics, featuring thought-leading opinions and experiences from global contributors including UHY member firms, leaders of UHY service and industry groups and external sources. A true resprsentation of what the UHY network is really about.

On June 21, with a vote of 5-4, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of South Dakota in the court case South Dakota v. Wayfair. This ruling throws out the court's outdated 1992 ruling in Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, which prohibited states from imposing sales tax collection obligations on vendors lacking an in-state physical presence.

This year marks the 50th anniversary for UHY LLP Michigan (formerly Follmer Rudziewicz). To commemorate this special milestone, the firm has exciting plans, including pledging $50,000 in the form of $1,000 donations to 50 different local charities who need it most. They’re also sponsoring a temporary exhibit filled with 20th century accounting artifacts at the Detroit Historical Society in the Streets of Old Detroit.

The Tax cuts and Jobs Act held many changes to tax planning and required documentation for business owners in 2018. One of those changes is meals and entertainment deductibility. Prior to 2018, meals and entertainment have been mostly considered 50 percent deductible for tax purposes as long as the taxpayer could show that the meal and/or entertainment had a business purpose or relation.

Even if they have good habits and a productive, busy life, it's often difficult for a young person to think about retirement at age 60, 65 or even 70 when so much of their energy is focused on what they are going to do today or even tomorrow. Most of their time is understandably spent figuring out how to meet current cash flow needs. As a result, it is not uncommon for someone to reach age 40 (or older) and have only minimal savings set aside for their retirement.

On June 21, the US Supreme Court issued its decision on the South Dakota v. Wayfair case regarding nexus determination for sales tax. In a 5-4 decision favoring South Dakota, the Court overturned judicial precedent dating back 50 years when it concluded Quill (1992) and National Bellas Hess (1967) to be unsound and incorrect.

For publicly traded companies the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminates the exceptions for performance- based compensation and commissions. Prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, performance- based compensation and commissions that exceeded $1 million were deductible under the exceptions available for these types of compensation to a covered employee. Previously, if a covered employee had a base salary of $500K and received performance- based bonuses of $4.5M the full $5M of compensation was deductible.

Michigan's new tobacco tax processing system, "Michigan Automated Tax System" (MiMATS) will begin July 30, 2018. The July 2018 tobacco tax returns will be filed using the MiMATS system and are due Aug. 20, 2018.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the most prescriptive global data protection law regulating enterprises that process personal data of European Union (EU) residents. The primary goal of the regulation is to provide a set of standardized data protection laws to make it easier for EU residents to understand how their personal data is being used and allow them to raise complaints, even if they do not reside in the country where the violation occurred.

In the simplest terms, Industry 4.0 is the intersection of machines, devices, sensors, data and people all communicating in real time via the cloud, intranet or network (ERP/MRP) system. “Smart factories” will begin to propel manufacturing into a new era where production, information technology and communication (internet) are all connected together to improve processes and supply chain optimization. The ultimate manufacturing goal is to make more informed decisions that will move products faster through the supply chain. These premises are the foundation of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

According to a new Standard & Poor’s report, there are two key indicators that will tell you what kind of shape the manufacturing industry is in. The first is the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Manager’s Index and the second is the Federal Reserve’s Capacity Utilization Index for motor vehicles and parts.

The Tax Cuts and Job Act was passed in December 2017, but the total impact to nonprofits will not really be known until we get through 2018. The reason, not only are there direct impact items in the Act, but there are also indirect impact items. It is very likely that the indirect impact items will have a greater effect on nonprofits.

After several years of stability in the accounting standards for nonprofit organizations, the new FASB standards need to be addressed soon on several different issues. Most of the preparation has focused on ASU 2016-14 Presentation of Financial Statements, which is effective for years beginning after Dec.15, 2017. Some organizations have not yet begun to consider the standards of ASU 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, which will be effective for most nonprofit entities for periods beginning after December 15, 2018, except for certain entities who have conduit debt which is not a private placement that have earlier adoption requirements.

Pfizer recently announced a major restructuring into three business segments. The move followed an unsuccessful attempt by the company to market its OTC, or Consumer Healthcare segment as it will be named under the new regime. The reorganization will position the company’s most promising growth area as its rebranded Innovative Medicines segment with the existing business lines from the old segment, as well as adding biosimilars and a new hospital business unit.

The Michigan offices have been voted by the Michigan Business & Professional Association (MPBA) as one of 2018’s best and brightest companies to work for in Metropolitan Detroit for the 15th year in a row! Only companies that distinguish themselves as having the most innovative and thoughtful human resources approach can be bestowed this honor.

You have done your planning to make an IRA contribution or Roth IRA conversion and visit your broker to complete the paperwork to make the magic happen. You're given a myriad of documents to complete to set the account up, provide funding details and selecting a beneficiary. You start to gather your things to leave and then you're handed a three page document that appears to be a lot of "boiler plate" language and your broker tells you that no signature is required. You may not be aware that this document is the contract between you and your custodian and it lays out all of the rules you have agreed to follow. Much like a qualified retirement plan, the document governs everything.

On March 13, 2018 the IRS announced five new compliance campaigns (3/13/18 IRS Announcement - SECA Tax), one of which relates to the reporting of self-employment income by limited partners in partnerships and LLCs. In the past there has been much uncertainty and inconsistency about the reporting of self-employment income by LLC members. Sec. 1402(a)(13) states that, other than guaranteed payments, the distributive share of all other income to a "limited partner" is excluded from self-employment tax. This has led to many LLC members, whether active in the business or not, to exclude their earnings from self-employment taxes.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people lose money to telephone scams. One of the most infamous scams is the IRS scam - and it is still on the rise. On July 19, the IRS issued its Tax Tip 2018-111, "Here's How the IRS Contacts Taxpayers", to help people avoid becoming a victim of scammers who pretend to be from the IRS with a goal of stealing personal information and ultimately his/her money.

Pursuant to the South Dakota v. Wayfair ruling, the Michigan Department of Treasury has announced that beginning Oct. 1, 2018, remote sellers, regardless of in-state presence, who meet certain requirements, must pay sales tax on transactions of taxable sales in the state. The Supreme Court decision in June has led to several states enacting new legislation pertaining to the collection of sales tax based on "economic presence".

On August 23, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service issued Proposed Regulations governing the availability of charitable contribution deductions when a taxpayer expects to receive a corresponding state or local tax credit.

On Aug. 8 the Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations containing some clarification on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) passed last December. One of the areas of anticipated clarification was whether W-2 wages paid from third party payers, such as professional employer organizations (PEOs) or agents under section 3504, were included in the wages of the third party payer or the taxpayer for purposes of calculating the qualified business deduction for pass-through entities.

FASB issued ASU 2018-11, which contains targeted improvements to Topic 842 Leases. Among the targeted improvements are a transitional method for reporting during the adoption period and clarification on separating components of a contract for lessors as they relate to FASB's new revenue guidance Topic 606 Revenue from Contracts with Customers. Topic 842 significantly alters current lease accounting under US GAAP. The new standard removes the current approach of classifying leases as either capital or operating leases.

While the term "unicorn" has been reserved for the once rare existence of a large, private company with a valuation in excess of $1 billion, such companies have become much more common in recent years. Today, over 150 unicorns are headquartered in the US, which represents significant growth as compared to less than 25 in 2011.

The Internal Revenue Service is encouraging taxpayers to use its Withholding Calculator to perform a "paycheck checkup". While they recommend reviewing your withholding amounts annually, changes from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 have made this a vital step for taxpayers. Taxpayers that do not verify that they are withholding the appropriate amount of tax from their paychecks risk an unexpected tax bill or penalty during tax time.

On Aug. 23, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations governing the availability of charitable contribution deductions when a taxpayer expects to receive a corresponding state or local tax credit.

On September 15, the IRS announced that it is extending tax filing and payment deadlines for taxpayers and businesses in North Carolina counties that were affected by Hurricane Florence and have been designated to qualify for FEMA. Currently, this only applies to parts of North Carolina, but taxpayers in other states will automatically receive these same filing and payment benefits as those states are added to the disaster area.

European companies face taxes as a percentage of the price of fuel on average 18% higher than the world average, putting them at a serious disadvantage and potentially risking economic growth, shows a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

US companies enjoy some of the lowest taxes as a percentage of the price of fuel in the world – on average 66 percent lower than the global average – shows a new study by UHY, the international accounting and consultancy network.

Sometimes a transaction does not result in the desired outcome. When it comes to IRA contributions and conversions though, tax laws were enacted to allow a do-over. This is the foundation for a "recharacterization." When a person converts a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, the amount converted becomes immediately taxable to the account holder.

The Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association (MITA) on behalf of the contractors and the Operation Engineers Local 324 (OE 324) agreed to end the lockout and continue working on more than 100 stalled road projects through the 2018 construction season.

UHY Advisors and UHY LLP are proud to welcome members from UHY International, one of the largest global accounting and consultancy networks in the world, to the Motor City for the 2018 International Members Meeting at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel in downtown Detroit. The meeting will be the largest gathering of UHY International partners in history with representatives from over 95 countries coming together to conduct business, gain education and experience the great comeback in Detroit.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act brought many changes to the deductibility of meals and entertainment. These changes included the complete disallowance of entertainment related expenses and the reduction of the amount deductible related to employer operated eating facilities to 50 percent of the related expenses. Left unanswered was whether or not businesses could continue deducting 50 percent of the costs of business meals.

Required minimum distributions (RMDs) are mandated withdrawals from qualified retirement plans and IRAs after you have reached the age of 70½. Miss one or don't take enough out of your account and a 50 percent penalty applies. While the IRS requires these distributions, that doesn't mean you can't plan to use it to your benefit.

Two hot areas of transfer pricing for consideration are intercompany loans and cash pooling. These two intercompany financing transactions are used by most multinational entities (MNEs) and are being targeted by the IRS and global tax authorities. Yet, most intercompany loans remain undocumented and have commercial terms that would not meet the required transfer pricing standards.

National Chairman and CEO of UHY Advisors, one of the country’s largest professional service firms, Anthony P. Frabotta was recognized with The Distinguished Service Award from the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants during their annual awards gala at Suburban Collection Showplace.

Trump has not been happy with NAFTA since taking office, at times calling it the "worst trade deal ever signed by any country". After working for more than a year to finalize a deal, Trump called the new agreement "truly historic". The US, Canada and Mexico have reached a deal to update and rename NAFTA.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act greatly simplified the "kiddie tax". The original kiddie tax required children under the age of 18, or under age 24 if they are a full time student, to pay taxes on their unearned income (interest, dividends, capital gains, rents, etc.) over $2,100 at their parents' highest tax rate. It also required a separate form and some complicated computations, as well as requiring parents to share their tax information with their children.

UHY LLP and UHY Advisors (“UHY”), a leading professional services organization, gathered their leadership from across the United States to the Motor City on Tuesday and Wednesday October 23-24 for the 2018 National Leadership Conference in downtown Detroit. The meeting included members representing all UHY offices across the United States who came together to discuss how to embrace change in the industry while serving clients, educate themselves on the newest industry leading practices and join their colleagues in the U.S. as they experienced the economic revitalization of Detroit.

There have been sweeping changes made to the guidance for revenue accounting within ASC Topic 606 by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). All December year end non-public companies must be compliant under the new revenue guidance by January 1, 2019. The following article is a very high level overview of the changes, please contact your professional at UHY for our Manufacturing Revenue Recognition Guidance Publication.

According to a new Standard & Poor’s report, there are two key indicators that will tell you what kind of shape the manufacturing industry is in. The first is the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Manager’s Index and the second is the Federal Reserve’s Capacity Utilization Index for motor vehicles and parts.

UHY Advisors (“UHY”), today announced that Melanie Chen was named a Crain’s New York Business Notable Women in Accounting and Consulting. Based in New York, Melanie is a Managing Director at UHY Advisors. The Crain’s award honors executives who have had a profound impact within the New York City business and social communities.

UHY International (“UHYI”), a worldwide network of independent professional services firms that provide audit, tax and advisory services around the globe, gathered their leadership in Detroit, Michigan from Wednesday, October 24 through Friday, October 26 for the 2018 annual meeting of international members. The meeting was the largest gathering of UHY International partners in history with representatives from nearly 100 countries coming together to discuss developments in the marketplace, exchange ideas, experience the economic revitalization in Detroit and network in iconic American venues such as the Henry Ford Museum and the Detroit Institute of Arts.

UHY Advisors national chairman/CEO and Rochester Hills native, Tony Frabotta was honored with the Distinguished Service Award from the Michigan Institution of Certified Public Accountants at their Annual Awards Dinner last night. Chris Peterson, principal, also received an award for Outgoing Task Force Chair.

Congratulations to Ed Plawecki - General Counsel of UHY Advisors Michigan practice and director of government relations, on his appointment by the Governor of Michigan to serve an eight year term on the Central Michigan University Board of Trustees.

The M&A market is experiencing steady growth in 2018 fueled by availability of capital, US economic conditions, and positive changes in the US tax law. According to Dykema's Mergers and Acquisitions Outlook Survey 2018/2019, 65 percent of respondents expect the M&A market to strengthen over the next twelve months.

The Supreme Court's decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair will impact the way all companies will handle sales and use tax. In case you missed it, UHY Advisors hosted a webinar on how the Supreme Court's decision has significantly altered the standard to determine whether a company is required to collect and remit sales and use tax.

Have you ever wondered if the way an agreement is titled would make a difference in when or how to recognize revenue? Not-for-profit (NFP) entities frequently have multiple types of revenue ranging from grant awards, contributions, contracts, sponsorships, cooperative agreements, fees, etc. Often times, a written agreement may even have multiple revenue components included in one contract.

At a recent board meeting for Urban Harvest STL, one board member raised an interesting question, “What is the ideal percentage of the budget we should spend on salaries?” As with most questions like this, the answer is - It depends. In particular, it depends on the operating requirements and strategy of the organization. Some organizations are more labor intensive, while others may be more volunteer driven.

UHY announced that Steven McCarty has been elected chief executive officer (CEO), effective January 1, 2019. McCarty succeeds Tony Frabotta as CEO, with Frabotta assuming the role of chairman. McCarty led the firm’s Corporate Finance line of business and was the industry service leader for the Professional Employer Organization practice at UHY. He is a member of the firm’s Board of Directors and the Michigan Region Executive Committee.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) increased the maximum amount of wages subject to Social Security tax to $132,900 for 2019 which is an increase of $4,500 from the 2018 amount of $128,400. Employees with wages of $132,900 or greater would pay in a maximum of $8,239.80 in 2019 and the employer would pay an equal amount.

UHY LLP and UHY Advisors (“UHY”) today announced they have expanded their operations in the Midwest with the addition of the professional services practice of McRuer & Associates, LLC (McRuer), located in Kansas City, Missouri.

The AICPA's Financial Reporting Executive Committee has released a working draft on Inventory Valuation guidance, which will be part of the upcoming release of its Business Combinations Accounting and Valuation Guide.

UHY Advisors, Inc. and UHY LLP (UHY) today announced that it has expanded its office in the Mid-Atlantic region through its merger of the professional services firm Berman Goldman & Ribakow LLP (bgr CPAs), located in Columbia, Maryland. The merger was effective December 3, 2018.

On Thanksgiving morning as many of us prepared turkey and green bean casserole, 11 Distinguished Clowns represented UHY LLP in the 92nd Annual America's Thanksgiving Parade! This was the firm's fifth year sponsoring the Distinguished Clown Corps and participating in one of the most storied and important civic events for the city of Detroit.

As we have witnessed the national sweepstakes for the right to host Amazon’s new headquarters, it has heightened the awareness that corporate executives and high-level employees must have for the potential state and local tax consequences of relocation or even participating in the decision-making process.

It is nearly certain that the fourth rate hike of 2018 will come in the next Federal Reserve meeting on December 19, NEARLY is the key word. According to meeting minutes from the last session, experts believe there is roughly a 75 percent chance that the Fed will raise interest rates by 0.25 percent following their meeting later this week.

There have been sweeping changes made to the guidance for revenue accounting within ASC Topic 606 by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) as part of a convergence project with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). Those changes come into effect January 1, 2019 for all non-public companies including homeowners associations, condominiums and cooperatives. Because the revenue recognition standard will eliminate the transaction- and industry-specific revenue recognition guidance included in current GAAP and replace it with a principle-based approach, it is important for management companies to gain an understanding of the standard and how it may impact the entity’s revenue recognition.

Businesses throughout the state are being warned by the Secretary of the State and Attorney General about an official looking "Annual Report Instruction Form" they may receive in the mail. The form stating that payment is required by CT law is being sent by "Workplace Compliance Services."

With much of the rhetoric in Washington D.C. during the past couple of weeks over funding of the border wall and the current government shut down, employers still may have reporting requirements for 2018 under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Act requires insurers, self-insuring employers, and those employers with 50 or more full-time equivalents (FTEs) to report certain information to the IRS and Social Security Administration using forms 1095-B, 1095-C and 1094.

2018 continued to generate a robust level of M&A activity in North America and Europe with over 15 thousand transactions completed through September representing over $2.4 trillion of deal value, according to Pitchbook, while valuation multiples rose slightly and remain above 9.0x.

We welcome, Suvod Associates, our new member firm in Nepal, to the global accountancy network UHY, extending our coverage within the Asia-Pacific region. The firm is in the process of adopting the UHY branding and will be known as UHY Suvod Associates, Chartered Accountants.

We welcome Bendoraytes & Cia – Auditores Independentes, our new member firm in Brazil, to the global accountancy network UHY, extending our coverage within South America. The firm is in the process of adopting the UHY branding and will be known as UHY Bendoraytes & Cia Auditores Independentes.

The centralized partnership audit regime rules are now in effect and change the way partnerships are audited by the IRS. These new rules require the actual partnership to pay any deficiencies resulting from any audit adjustments. This means that the IRS will apply the top tax rates to any audit adjustments to calculate deficiencies, without regard to any partner level attribute that may have otherwise reduced the tax due from an audit adjustment.

UHY LLP is a licensed independent CPA firm that performs attest services in an alternative practice structure with UHY Advisors, Inc. and its subsidiary entities. UHY Advisors, Inc. provides tax and business consulting services through wholly owned subsidiary entities that operate under the name of "UHY Advisors." UHY Advisors, Inc. and its subsidiary entities are not licensed CPA firms. UHY LLP and UHY Advisors, Inc. are U.S. members of Urbach Hacker Young International Limited, a UK company, and form part of the international UHY network of legally independent accounting and consulting firms. "UHY" is the brand name for the UHY international network. Any services described herein are provided by UHY LLP and/or UHY Advisors (as the case may be) and not by UHY or any other member firm of UHY. Neither UHY nor any member of UHY has any liability for services provided by other members.

On this website, (i) the term "our firm", "we" and terms of similar import, denote the alternative practice structure conducted by UHY LLP and UHY Advisors, Inc. and its subsidiary entities, and (ii) the term "UHYI" denotes the UHY international network, in each case as more fully described in the preceding paragraph.